The AI-driven coding revolution is now targeting Android app development directly. On Tuesday, Google unveiled new capabilities within its web-based Google AI Studio that enable native Android app creation, compressing a process that typically requires weeks of setup and coding into just minutes. The company also announced that consumers will be able to use Gemini AI to discover the apps they need, both on the Play Store and the web, broadening opportunities for developers to get their apps noticed.

Google states that these new features could benefit anyone—from experienced developers looking to quickly prototype a new app to first-time creators. By offering the ability to essentially "vibe-code" Android apps through web-based tools, Google is intensifying competition with other AI-powered development platforms like Cursor, Replit, Lovable, Claude Code, and others, while simultaneously opening Android development to a new type of user: non-technical creators. This announcement also marks an expansion of Google’s earlier integration of AI-powered coding with Gemini in the desktop version of Android Studio. According to Google, the apps are built using the Kotlin programming language with its Jetpack Compose toolkit and include support for hardware sensors such as GPS, Bluetooth, and NFC.

However, for now, the resulting creations are intended solely for personal use, as publishing for family and friends remains on the roadmap. The company suggests that the technology could be used for building personal utilities, simple social apps, hardware-enabled experiences, or AI-powered experiences. At present, aspiring app developers can use the embedded Android Emulator directly in a web browser to preview and interact with the app as it's being built. Users can then install the app on their Android phone via a USB cable connected to their computer, using the integrated Android Debug Bridge (adb). For those looking to advance their project, AI Studio can automatically create the app record, package the bundle, and upload it to an internal testing track in Google Play Console for developers. This enables users to continue iterating on their app while updating it on their devices along the way.

Those who want to take the next steps toward more public publishing can transfer this version of the project to Android Studio by downloading a zip file and exporting it directly to GitHub. In the future, Google plans to allow creators to publish their apps for use by family and friends and will add support for Firebase integrations, including Firestore, Firebase Auth, Firebase App Check, and other tools. In doing so, the company envisions an Android app ecosystem where users discover apps from within their own network of friends, not just the Play Store. For the Play Store itself, Google is also infusing AI into the experience. A new "Ask Play" AI-powered overlay will enable users to discover new apps by having natural conversations with AI within the Play Store.

Perhaps more significantly, apps will begin to appear in users' conversations with Google’s Gemini virtual assistant, exposing developers’ apps to millions of users. This feature will roll out in the weeks ahead across Gemini on the web and on Android. Later this year, Gemini will also surface over 450,000 movies and TV shows, along with where to livestream sports, which can directly link users from their queries to a developer’s Android app containing the relevant content.

While Google previewed a number of Android-related announcements last week, it held back on sharing the news about native Android app development until Tuesday’s start of its annual developer conference, Google I/O. This suggests that the company considers this a more significant development, closely tied to its vision of putting AI to real-world use—a central theme of this year’s event, where AI was integrated across Google products, from workspace productivity apps to AI tools, search, mobile apps, and more.