All of Google’s major consumer platforms, like Android and ChromeOS, allow for third-party developers. In the case of Assistant, Google is making a change to focus on Android and will essentially no longer allow third-party voice experiences – including apps and games with visual interactions – on Smart Displays or speakers.
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Google Assistant capabilities created by third-parties, including developers integrating smart home devices, are known as “Actions.” The company today announced an updated Google Assistant Actions policy that introduces device quality and safety guidelines.
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From smart home controls to setting reminders and asking questions, you’re mostly interacting with Google when using a Nest Hub. That said, third-party apps do exist, and Google is making a big push for Smart Display games this year.
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Google Assistant has a lot of third-party capabilities called Actions. To aid discoverability, Google has long offered a browsable Explore page, and there’s now an updated card in Assistant’s Updates feed.
With Smart Displays last year, Google Assistant in the home gained a screen to allow for more complex experiences beyond voice. Leveraged today for watching video, recipes, and controls, Google is now letting developers take advantage of the display for fullscreen app-like experiences.
In addition to a big visual redesign for Assistant on phones, Actions on Google today are becoming a more viable platform for developers. These Google Assistant apps can now offer subscriptions and other digital goods to users.
With the announcement of YouTube Premium earlier this month, Google is planning more original content for its subscription service. The latest YouTube Original is arriving next week and cleverly being promoted through the Google Assistant.
In recent weeks, Wear OS has undergone a lot of notable developments from the rebrand to the Android P Developer Preview. Today, just ahead of I/O 2018 next week, Google is announcing a number of updates to make Google Assistant more full featured.
With I/O 2018 less than a week away, Google has updated the official Android companion app with a more detailed map and better navigation tools for conference attendees. Meanwhile, earlier in the week, Google also launched an Assistant Action.
Hot off the heels of supporting Assistant Actions and hardware with a new investment fund, Google today also launched a new design guide for creating apps on its latest platform. Similar to the Material Design guidelines, it provides an introduction and walkthrough for both new and experienced developers.
Google Assistant may have launched with somewhat limited capabilities, but over the past year or so the company’s “Actions on Google” platform has exploded with thousands of excellent apps and integrations. Now, users can provide feedback on those with reviews.
Many developers when creating applications today also have to target the smart speakers platform and other similar devices. Google’s solution for creating conversational Actions is called Dialogflow and today the Enterprise Edition is now generally available.
Coachella and YouTube have long been partners with the latter livestreaming the concert series. This year, the rest of Google is joining with an Assistant Action for Home and phones, while the Made by Google team is continuing its advertising blitz with Pixel photo booths.
On Friday, Google announced that Assistant would gain multilingual support, more languages, and Routines throughout 2018. To aid developers with this expansion, the company is making it easier to bring Actions on Google abroad, while apps will be better able to integrate with Assistant.
For many, the best use of Google Assistant on Android and Home is to control smart appliances, ask questions, and issue commands. However, the company has also been hard at work building an app ecosystem — just like the Play Store — through Actions on Google. At I/O 2017, Google announced a Developer Challenge and the winners are now in.
With last week’s redesign, the Google Assistant gained an updated interface on Android. Today, a refreshed look that we previously activated is also coming to the Explore tab, along with a number of other changes to improve both Assistant app discovery and functionality.
Launched at I/O 2017, Actions on Google is continuing its international expansion with the addition of Canadian English. Starting today, Canadian users will get access to Assistant apps and a directory optimized for the country, while developers will now be able to localize their apps.
Google likes to highlight what it calls “Experiments” from third-party developers that leverage Chrome, Android, AI, or virtual reality. The site is today adding a new category called “Voice Experiments” that showcases conversations applied to games and storytelling on platforms like Google Home.
Actions on Google and Assistant apps launched at I/O in the U.S. and most recently in Australia and the U.K. With more developers now working on apps for the platform, Google has added a search feature to more easily look through the Assistant directory.
Last month, Google began expanding Assistant apps around the world with a rollout to the United Kingdom. Beginning today, users in Australia can access Actions on Google, while developers can start building apps for Australian English.
Actions on Google first launched on Google Home in December of last year before expanding to Android and iOS at I/O 2017 in May. Those launches were mostly local to the US, but Google is today making them available in British English for the United Kingdom.
Actions on Google was announced last year and meant to expand Home’s capabilities through third-party services. Since then, a number of services have released fun and useful experiences. Google is now adding new tools for developers to build better voice games for Assistant.
At the moment, Google Assistant on Pixel and Home is still very much limited in what it can do. With the launch of Actions on Google, the company is finally opening up its Assistant to third-party developers and services. Google Home will be the first device to benefit, with Google taking a noticeably more curated approach.
