Opal, Google’s vibe coding tool, is coming to Gemini. The company announced Wednesday that it will integrate tools for building AI-powered mini-apps within its Gemini web app, allowing users to create their own custom apps, which Google calls Gems.
Introduced in 2024, Gems are customized versions of Gemini designed for specific tasks and scenarios. For example, Google’s ready-made gems include a learning coach, a brainstorming assistant, a career guide, a coding partner, and an editor.
Opal, on the other hand, focuses on helping users create mini-apps or combine existing apps. To use this feature, users describe the app they want to create in natural language, and the tool creates the app using various Gemini models.
Opal is currently available directly from Gemini on the web and can be found in Gem Manager. This tool includes a visual editor that lays out the steps required to create your application. From the editor, users can reorder and link steps without writing any code.
Google notes that the visual editor also includes a new view in Gemini that converts user-written prompts into a list of steps. This makes it even easier to build apps and see how they work.
For more advanced customization options, users can go from Gemini to the advanced editor at opal.google.com. Mini apps can be reused after they are created.
The use of AI to program and create apps, known as “vibecoding,” has rapidly grown in popularity over the past few years. There are currently apps on the market from startups like Lovable and Cursor, as well as products from AI providers like Anthropic and OpenAI. Some tools, like those from AI-powered app-building startup Wabi, are more directly consumer-focused.
Gemini’s web app is available at gemini.google.com.
