Google announced Tuesday that users can run privately created, AI-built Android apps on their smartphones through Google Play without first publishing them publicly.
The feature lets users launch personal apps using their standard Google account. The apps will remain private, will not appear in Google Play search results or listing pages, and will not be shared with anyone other than their creator.
Android device owners can use Google AI Studio to build, or “vibe code,” an app and launch it for their own use, Google said. The feature is initially available in the United States to users aged 18 and older, and personal apps must comply with existing Google Play policies.
The feature follows growing interest in using AI to build applications for specific personal needs. Running self-created apps on Android previously meant publishing them through Google Play, potentially making them accessible to roughly 3 billion users, which led many creators to focus on web apps rather than native Android apps.
Sam Bright, Google’s vice president and general manager for the Google Play and Developer Ecosystem, said in a briefing ahead of Tuesday’s launch that the future of apps on Google Play was “personal, secure, and built by everyone.” He described a shift from “there’s an app for that” to “there’s an app for me.”
Google said users will be able to share their AI-built apps with a network of trusted friends in the coming months. Apps created for family, friends or groups such as a child’s T-ball league could then be used privately by a small group without a public Play Store listing.
Creators whose personal apps become popular will be able to convert them into publicly published Google Play apps after completing trust and safety reviews.
Google said it is also developing AI-based tools to curate Google Play, including a personalized game recommendation engine called Game Finder. Initially available in English in the United States, it will combine users’ gaming preferences with Google’s knowledge drawn from its community of 1.2 billion players.
Users will also be able to create their own game lists, ask questions about games in a new Community Posts section and join 48-hour gaming challenges called Sprints.
Ask Play, the Play Store’s built-in AI assistant, is being updated to compare similar apps and identify their key differences. Google Play apps and games will also be integrated more deeply into Gemini conversations.
The changes are rolling out alongside Google Play support for an age-range feature that lets parents share their child’s age range, rather than an exact birthdate, with developers to enable age-appropriate experiences.
Tags: AndroidGoogle Play
