TLDR;
Google has opened a preview of its Connected Apps Platform so outside developers can bring actions and authorised account data into Search, the Gemini app or both. Businesses can connect through a cloud-hosted MCP server or Android AppFunctions, then submit the integration through Google's new console. This is a route to become an action provider inside Google's AI surfaces, but it is phased, US-focused and still missing public rules for ranking, fees and conversion measurement.
What happened
Google announced the Connected Apps Platform on 28 October as a single build-and-review route for Search and Gemini. Developers connect a cloud-hosted Model Context Protocol server or an Android MCP implementation based on AppFunctions, then register tools, test them and submit the app in Google Connected Console. Before review, the developer chooses Search, Gemini or both.
The platform is not a general release. Google's documentation describes self-service onboarding during a preview, and TechCrunch reports that the beta is available to US developers who sign up. Google says access will expand in phases to more developers, markets and products, but it has not given a general-availability date.
Connected Apps can expose authorised account data and actions after a user links the service. Google says users link once, then can use their live account context in applicable products. Cloud services use MCP and OAuth 2.1, while Android apps can run eligible functions locally through Jetpack AppFunctions. Developers keep verified logos and authenticated accounts and can monitor traffic, latency and error rates.
Google says more than 50 Connected Apps now exist across Search and Gemini. Adobe, Experian, Localiza and Peloton are live in Gemini and are due in Search in the coming weeks, while Calm is planned for both surfaces. Those future Search rollouts should not be represented as live today, and an approved app still depends on users choosing to connect it.
Why it matters
This is a formal distribution layer for functionality, not another structured-data format. A travel company, bank, retailer or software provider could let a user check availability, retrieve an account-specific answer or complete an action without first opening the brand's site. That can reduce friction, but it also moves part of the customer journey into Google's interface.
The commercial upside depends on selection. Google has not explained how Search or Gemini chooses between multiple connected apps that can satisfy the same request, whether placement can be bought, or what quality signals influence invocation. Building a valid integration therefore does not guarantee discovery, traffic or usage.
Operational reporting is also narrower than marketing reporting. Traffic, latency and error rates help engineering teams maintain a reliable tool, but the announcement does not promise query-level discovery data, conversion reporting, revenue attribution or an explanation of why one app was selected. Brands will need their own event model from invocation through business outcome.
Identity and consent become part of visibility. A linked account can make the result more useful, yet every extra permission creates abandonment and governance risk. OAuth scopes, data retention, account deletion, regional eligibility and customer support need the same scrutiny as the conversational experience. The app is now a customer-facing service inside a search product.
How your brand can benefit / be affected
Start with a narrow action that has clear user value and a measurable completion, such as checking an order, booking an appointment or creating a saved list. Define the minimum data and tools the task needs. Do not expose a broad internal API merely because MCP makes it technically possible.
Build for review and reliability. Use OAuth 2.1 with least-privilege scopes, stable tool descriptions, idempotent writes and explicit confirmation before consequential actions. Track latency, tool errors, authentication failures and handoffs, then add business events that connect an invocation to a completed outcome without storing the user's conversation.
Treat brand identity as a product-control surface. Verify logos, account names and support routes, and make responses clear about who is performing the action. Test ambiguous requests, stale account state, partial failures and cases where two services could respond. A technically successful call that surprises the customer is still a poor brand experience.
Finally, keep the investment staged. Apply for the preview, prototype one high-value workflow and compare it with existing site or app journeys. Record what Google does not yet provide, especially selection logic, commercial terms and conversion reporting. Connected Apps could become a new form of enterprise discovery, but the current advantage belongs to teams that can combine useful actions with consent, reliability and their own measurement.
News date: 28 October 2026. Editorial review: 29 October 2026.