Cloud Stage - Day 2 (Google I/O 2025)

Key Concepts

• Google Workspace Automation: Automating repetitive tasks using AI and integrations within Google Workspace.
• Workspace Flows: A new Google Workspace feature for automating workflows with AI agents in the loop.
• Gems: AI experts created to solve particular tasks, integrated natively into Workspace Flows.
• Workspace Connectors Platform: A platform to natively integrate third-party applications within Google Workspace.
• Gemini Extensions: Using Gemini to retrieve information and take actions within Google Workspace applications.
• Flutter: A cross-platform UI toolkit for building natively compiled applications from a single codebase.
• Dart: The programming language used by Flutter, with recent improvements in syntax and tooling.
• Direct Native Interop: A set of features in Flutter that allow developers to access native code more easily.
• WebAssembly (WasmGC): A web technology that allows Dart code to be compiled to a binary format for faster performance.
• Firebase AI Logic: A set of tools and APIs that allow developers to integrate AI into their Flutter apps.

Google Workspace Automation with AI

Overview of Google Workspace and AI Integration

• Google Workspace aims to meaningfully connect people for collaborative work.
• It boasts over 11 million paying customers, ranging from small businesses to large enterprises.
• Google Workspace leverages AI extensively, with over 2 billion AI assists monthly, including features like "Help me write" and "Help me summarize."
• The platform's architecture is cloud-native, ensuring automatic updates and security.
• Gmail's 20-year security history is integrated into all Google Workspace applications.

The Workspace Platform Stack

• Zero Trust and Secure Layer: Provides foundational security.
• Ways to Build: Offers options from no-code (AppSheet) to low-code (App Script) to pro-code (APIs).
• Services to Integrate: Includes smart chips, add-ons, and chat apps for human-in-the-loop workflows.
• Solutions and Marketplace: Allows publishing solutions on a marketplace accessible within applications.

Ways to Build Integrations

• No-Code (AppSheet): Enables building apps without coding, even using Gemini prompts.
• Low-Code (App Script): Allows automating tasks with JavaScript within Google Workspace, without needing a runtime environment.
• Pro-Code (APIs): Enables integrating custom applications using Google Workspace APIs.

Human in the Loop

• Smart Chips: Bring information from external sources (e.g., Asana) directly into Google Workspace applications.
• Add-ons: Allow installing integrations (e.g., Miro whiteboard) within meetings for collaboration.
• Chat Apps: Facilitate asynchronous task completion. Unified chat apps allow building once and distributing across Workspace.

Chat App Enhancements

• New capabilities include subscribing to all messages in a conversation, creating new spaces, and managing memberships.
• These features enable building agentic chat apps that can summarize information and take actions.

Google Workspace Flows

• Problem: Traditional automation tools struggle with complex workflows requiring context, reasoning, analysis, or creation.
• Solution: Google Workspace Flows automates work with agents in the loop across Google Workspace applications and third-party tools.
• Templates: Pre-built templates offer immediate value (e.g., managing customer feedback).
• Integration with Google Forms: Allows triggering workflows based on form responses.
• Gemini Integration: Enables handing off complex logic to Gemini for analysis and summarization.
• Gem Integration: Natively integrates AI experts (Gems) into workflows.
  • Pre-made Gems
  • Custom Gems
  • Team of Gems
• Example: A customer service workflow uses a "quality expert" Gem to analyze feedback and a "customer service assistant" Gem to generate email responses.
• Natural Language Integration: Allows users to create and modify flows using natural language prompts.
• Extensibility:
  • Apps Script Integration: Allows using Apps Script to define custom actions and triggers.
  • Vertex AI Integration: Enables calling custom models (including Llama and Gemini) from flows.
  • Native Integrations: Integrations with tools like Jira are available out of the box.

Google Workspace Connectors Platform

• Natively integrates third-party applications within Google Workspace.
• Offers easy setup and enterprise-grade security.
• Enables two key scenarios: Google Workspace Flows and Gemini extensions.
• Gemini Extensions: Allow retrieving information and taking actions within Google Workspace applications using natural language.
  • Example: Mentioning Asana in an email to retrieve project information.
  • Example: Asking Mailchimp for campaign statistics directly within an email.
• Works within the Gemini app as well, allowing complex questions and formatted results.
• Integrations with Asana, Confluence, HubSpot, and Mailchimp are planned.

Ecosystem and Marketplace

• New integrations include HubSpot and ServiceNow.
• The Google Workspace Marketplace offers over 6,000 applications.

Four Key Takeaways

1. Google Workspace Connector Platform: Provides out-of-the-box integrations.
2. Extensibility Survey: Offers flow actions and triggers for customization.
3. Google Workspace Flows: Automates work with agents in the loop.
4. Marketplace Publishing: Allows publishing solutions for use in core applications.

Flutter and Dart Updates

Introduction to Flutter

• Flutter aims to support all device classes from a single shared source code base.
• It enables creating rich and beautiful experiences with higher productivity and quality.
• Flutter is the most used multiplatform app framework since 2021 (JetBrains State of the Developer Ecosystem survey).
• Flutter accounts for 28% of all new free apps in the Apple App Store (AppTopia).

Flutter App Examples

• Reflection.app: Uses Flutter, Firebase, and Gemini for a personalized journaling experience. Gemini integration led to a 60% increase in user engagement.
• teamLab: Creates museum apps with Flutter, reaching 35 million users. Flutter increased their development velocity.
• Google Cloud Mobile App: Rewritten in Flutter for UI and logic consistency across platforms. Features AI-powered analysis and troubleshooting.
• NotebookLM: Mobile client built with Flutter for rapid time to market.

Flutter Community

• The Flutter community is highly active, with numerous live streams, Q&A sessions, and local groups.
• The Flutter meetup network has 150 groups in 66 countries, with over 83,000 members.
• In the last year, Flutter welcomed 202 new first-time contributors, bringing the total to 843.
• These developers landed over 4,000 changes to Flutter.

Dart Language Improvements

• Digit Separators: Visual separators for large numbers.
• Wildcard Variables: Allows using _ for values that are not needed.
• Null-Aware Elements: Includes elements in a collection only if they are not null.
• Dot Shorthands: Shorter syntax for constructors based on context types.

Dart Tooling Improvements

• Property Editor: Shows primary layout properties in the IDE for easy modification.
• Specter: Improved widget tree, simpler properties view, and hot reload/navigation options.
• Pub.dev:
  • Dark mode support.
  • Download counts.
  • Trending packages.
  • Full version powered by cloud infrastructure.
• Formatter Tool:
  • Automates adding and removing trailing commas.
  • Optimized formatting.
  • New configuration option to disable trailing comma removal.
• Cross-Compilation: Supports compiling Linux binaries from Windows and Mac OS machines.
• Dot CLI Tool Optimization: Compiled in AOT binary for faster performance.

Flutter Native Interop

• Direct Native Interop: Allows accessing native code as easily as Dart code.
• Merging the UI Thread: Merges the UI thread back into the platform thread to simplify calling native APIs.
• Build Hooks: Allows downloading pre-prepared artifacts or compiling from source and baking them into the Flutter app.
• FFIGen and JNI JNIgen: Experimental features to simplify calling functions in different languages.

iOS Improvements

• Migrated tens of thousands of functional lines of code back to the base widgets library.
• Improved Cupertino library fidelity and coverage.
• Revisited spring and scrolling physics.
• Updated bottom sheets, collapsibles, and navigation bars.
• Faithfully replicated Apple's squircle shape using the RSuperellipse class.
• Migrating off of Cocoapods and onto Swift Package Manager.

Android Improvements

• Android joined iOS in using Impeller as its primary renderer.
• Android's edge-to-edge UI system is Flutter's default.
• Added Android Scribe feature for converting handwriting to text.
• Supporting new page transitions, updating progress indicators and sliders.

Web Improvements

• Fully supporting WebAssembly (WasmGC) for faster performance.
• Improved accessibility system.
• Stateful Hot Reload: Available for Flutter web in preview.

Ecosystem Highlights

• Canonical: Contributing to Flutter's desktop quality, including Windows support and accessibility fixes.
• LG: Expanding Flutter usage in WebOS, aiming for an official launch in the first half of next year.
• Universal Destinations and Experiences: Using Flutter for guest-facing self-service dining kiosks at Universal Epic Universe in Orlando.
• 1080 Motion: Using Flutter for training and rehabilitation software, achieving 60 FPS on low-cost embedded hardware.
• GE Appliances: Utilizing Flutter for their main products with LCD screens.

AI Integration

• Firebase AI Logic: Allows using Vertex AI and developer Gemini APIs from a single Dart SDK.
• AI Monitoring Dashboard: Provides insights into Flutter app usage and Gemini API consumption.
• Gemini Live API: Allows users to chitchat with Gemini within Flutter apps.
• Gemini Integration in DartPad: Allows experimenting with AI-powered features in DartPad.
• Gemini Support in Android Studio: Flutter is now first class in Android Studio with Gemini integration.
• Gemini Code Assistance in VS Code: Available through the Code Exist extension.
• MCP (Model Communication Protocol): Used for better performance on complex tasks like fixing layout issues and managing dependencies.

Conclusion

The Google IO session highlighted significant advancements in both Google Workspace automation and Flutter development. Google Workspace is becoming increasingly intelligent with AI-powered features like Workspace Flows and Gemini extensions, enabling users to automate complex tasks and integrate third-party applications seamlessly. Flutter continues to evolve as a powerful cross-platform UI toolkit, with improvements in Dart, native interop, web performance, and AI integration. These advancements empower developers to build high-quality, AI-powered applications across a wide range of platforms.