Google Connected Apps Platform is the most important distribution change for small app businesses this year, and it arrived quietly. On October 28, 2026, Google opened a developer preview that lets any developer bring a service into Gemini, Google Search, or both, through one submission process.
Until now, building a connected app meant working closely with Google. Now there is a standard route: register, test, and submit through the Google Connected Console, and users reach your service without leaving their conversation or search results.
What Google actually opened
Connected Apps let users do things like order groceries or build a playlist from inside Google’s products. More than 50 Connected Apps already span Search and Gemini, in categories including productivity, event ticketing, health, and fitness.
Adobe, Experian, Localiza, and Peloton integrations are live in Gemini and reach Search in the coming weeks. A Calm integration is planned for both. Those names show the range: creative tools, credit data, car rental, fitness, and meditation.
There are two ways to build. A cloud-hosted MCP server connects your service through the Model Context Protocol, the open standard most of the industry now uses. Android MCP uses the AppFunctions APIs so an Android app can expose functions that run on the device itself.
Once live, the console shows traffic, latency, and error rates, and developers keep control of verified logos and authenticated accounts. Users link the app themselves through Google Account Linking, so the connection is authorized, not automatic.
The evidence: what is open, what is not said
| Detail | What the source says |
|---|---|
| Announced | October 28, 2026, by Google product managers for Search and the Gemini app |
| Status | Developer preview, opening in phases over the coming months |
| Surfaces | Google Search, the Gemini app, or both — the developer chooses before review |
| Build routes | Cloud-hosted MCP server, or Android MCP built on AppFunctions APIs |
| Management | Google Connected Console: registration, testing, submission, review, metrics |
| Apps already live | More than 50 Connected Apps across Search and Gemini |
| Named partners | Adobe, Experian, Localiza, Peloton live in Gemini; Calm planned for both |
| Availability caveat | TechCrunch and Android Authority report the preview is limited to US developers; Google’s post itself names no countries |
| Not disclosed | Fees, app ranking rules, review criteria, data-sharing terms, and a date for wider availability |
| Privacy rules | Apps must exchange only the minimum data a feature needs, may not sell user data, must publish a privacy policy, and may not carry third-party adverts |
MCP, the Model Context Protocol, is an open standard letting an assistant call another service’s tools consistently. Account Linking is where a user authorizes Google to connect their account on your service.
How your app gets into Gemini and Search
1. Pick a route — A cloud MCP server, or Android MCP on AppFunctions.
2. Register in the Console — Set up your app in the Google Connected Console.
3. Test it — Verify the actions, the account linking, and the data you exchange.
4. Choose surfaces and submit — Search, Gemini, or both, then send it for review.
5. Watch the metrics — Traffic, latency, and error rates once you are live.
How to profit from it
Distribution inside Gemini and Search is a service you can sell before it is crowded:
- Offer Connected App builds to local and niche businesses. Booking, ordering, and ticketing are the obvious first actions, and every one of them already has a buyer.
- Sell the MCP server as a product. Many small apps have no MCP server at all. Build one, host it, and charge a setup fee plus maintenance.
- Package the privacy paperwork. Google’s rules require a privacy policy, minimum-data exchange, and a data-deletion explanation. That compliance bundle is billable work most developers skip.
- Pitch the “build once” angle. One submission reaches two of Google’s biggest surfaces. That sentence belongs in your proposal’s first paragraph.
- Join the preview waitlist now. Access opens in phases. Early movers get reviewed while the category is still thin, and that is when discovery is cheapest.
What to watch before you build
First, the preview may be US-only for now, according to TechCrunch and Android Authority. If your client is elsewhere, confirm eligibility before promising a launch date.
Second, Google has not disclosed fees, ranking rules, or review criteria. An app can be rejected under Connected Apps policy, and there is no published timeline for review.
Finally, user data stays with your app under your own policy once Gemini shares it, and disconnecting does not take it back. State that honestly in the privacy page.
Sources: Google’s October 28 announcement as reported by Gadgets360 and PPC Land, linked below. US-only availability is reported by TechCrunch and Android Authority via that coverage, not stated in Google’s post.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Google Connected Apps Platform?
A developer preview, announced October 28, 2026, that lets developers bring their services into Google Search, the Gemini app, or both, through one registration, testing, and submission process.
How do I build a Connected App?
Either a cloud-hosted MCP server, or Android MCP built on Google’s AppFunctions APIs. Then register, test, and submit through the Google Connected Console.
Which apps are already live?
Google says more than 50 Connected Apps span Search and Gemini, including Adobe, Experian, Localiza, and Peloton in Gemini, with Calm planned for both products.
Is the preview open to everyone?
Access opens in phases. TechCrunch and Android Authority report it is limited to US developers for now; Google’s post names no countries and no date for wider availability.
What does Google charge for Connected Apps?
Google has not disclosed fees, ranking rules, or review criteria in the announcement coverage.
Sources: Gadgets360 — Google opens Connected Apps Platform preview · PPC Land — Google opens preview for third-party apps
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