Google announced today a major update to its AI Mode, the conversational search experience launched in early 2025. With this new feature, users can now link and interact directly with third-party apps such as Instacart, Canva, and YouTube within the same search interface. The goal is to transform AI Mode from a simple question-answering tool into a full-fledged task completion assistant.
Direct connection with Instacart for instant grocery shopping
One of the most practical features involves grocery shopping. If a user is planning a barbecue and uses AI Mode to create a shopping list, they can connect their Instacart account and add ingredients directly to the cart, completing the purchase in a few clicks without leaving the search session. This process eliminates the need to switch between apps, simplifying meal planning.
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Canva provides design templates on demand
For creative projects, the integration with Canva allows users to ask AI Mode to show a selection of templates for flyers, presentations, or social graphics. The user can preview designs and choose the best one without manually opening the app. This synergy aims to make visual content creation faster and more accessible right from search.
Playlists on YouTube Music generated with a single prompt
Another concrete example from Google involves music. Users can ask AI Mode to create a playlist for a party and, after linking their YouTube account, the playlist is instantly saved to YouTube Music. The integration leverages personal preferences and history to suggest relevant tracks, making the listening experience more personalized.
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Expanding capabilities to compete with ChatGPT and Claude
With this update, Google aims to compete more directly with AI assistants like OpenAI's ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude, both of which already feature app integrations. While ChatGPT can connect to plugins and services like Slack or Wolfram Alpha, Google's AI Mode focuses on the depth of integrated search. The company stated that it is working with a range of partners and plans to extend support to many more apps in the coming weeks. This launch follows the recent renaming of NotebookLM to Gemini Notebook, signaling a strategy to unify AI tools under the Gemini brand.
From questions to actions: a paradigm shift
Today's update builds on a feature introduced at last year's Google I/O, which already allowed connecting third-party apps to the Gemini app to complete tasks faster. Since then, Google has added the ability to check product availability at a nearby store and to browse the web side-by-side with AI Mode to compare details and ask follow-up questions. The integration with Instacart, Canva, and YouTube represents the next step toward an AI assistant that can take concrete action, not just answer queries. According to the official announcement, the rollout began today for U.S. users and will gradually expand. For more details, see the original article on TechCrunch.
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Source: https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/16/googles-ai-mode-now-lets-you-link-and-interact-with-select-apps
