Google's Create My Widget app will launch on Googlebooks in early October, with a Play Store listing showing a guided interface for Android phones that lets users build custom widgets from categories like Weather, Markets, and Daily Brief, or describe their own using generative AI.
Conversations, a federated Android messaging app developed since 2014, is now free after the developer ended its paid distribution on Google Play Store. The decision follows years of frustration with Google's app review process, arbitrary rejections, and a 15% revenue cut that the developer argues is unjustifiable given poor customer service and delayed security update reviews.
Google is rolling out Pixel VIPs 2.0, which replaces the bottom sheet interface with a fullscreen layout when tapping contacts, adds a pill-shaped VIP switcher for quick access, and redesigns the widget with outline-style icons and reorganized card placement. The update removes media and place recommendations while introducing a pencil icon for quick editing in Google Contacts.