Prime Highlights:
- Google expands access to Opal, its no-code AI app builder, to 15 new countries, including India, Brazil, Japan, South Korea, and Canada.
- Opal allows users to create web apps through text prompts, making app development accessible to non-coders, with improved performance and usability.
Key Facts:
- Opal’s AI generates apps from user descriptions, allowing visual customization, debugging, and parallel task execution.
- Opal competes with no-code platforms like Canva, Figma, and Replit, aiming to simplify app creation for non-technical users worldwide.
Background
Google has expanded access to Opal, its AI-powered app builder, to 15 more countries, including India, Brazil, Japan, South Korea, and Canada. Opal allows users to create mini web apps using text prompts, making app development accessible to people without coding skills.
“When we launched Opal in the U.S., we thought users would create simple tools,” said Megan Li, senior product manager at Google Labs. “But early users built very creative and practical apps. That showed us the need to bring Opal to more creators around the world.”
Opal works by having users enter a description of the app they want. Google’s AI models generate the app, and users can then customize the workflow visually, review and edit prompts, or add new steps using Opal’s toolbar. Once ready, apps can be published online and shared with others.
Google has also made updates to improve Opal’s performance and usability. The users can now stepwise debug their workflow, immediately see errors, and run steps in parallel to perform complex tasks. Creation of apps has also been accelerated, cutting down on waiting time.
Opal enters an evolving category of no-code design tools with its release in the U.S. in July and competes with similar tools, such as Canva, Figma, and Replit. The objectives of these platforms are to give non-technical users the ability to create app prototypes fast and effectively.
Google’s growth and updates are expected to help more people around the world use Opal, allowing creators to try AI-powered apps and build them easily without needing to code.
