Google Acquires No-Code Platform
Google Cloud bolstered its enterprise DevOps portfolio this week with its acquisition of AppSheet, a no-code application development platform.
Terms of the deal including the purchase price were not disclosed.
No-code platforms allow “citizen developers” and other business users to create enterprise applications without the need for high-end coding skills. The automation tools allow novice developers to get applications out the door faster than standard DevOps frameworks.
Low- and no-code application development platforms often combine a graphic interface with drag-and-drop modules and other user-friendly components. For AI applications, industry analysts estimate application development times can be accelerated by a factor of ten.
“AppSheet complements Google Cloud’s strategy to reimagine the application development space with a platform that helps enterprises innovate with no-code development, workflow automation, application integration and API management as they modernize their business processes in the cloud,” Amit Zavery, Google Cloud’s vice president of business application platforms, noted in a blog post announcing the no-code acquisition.
The cloud-based no-code framework will be aimed at the financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, media and retail markets, Google said.
AppSheet will be integrated with Google’s existing suite of app development tools, including Google Forms and Sheets as well as Google Analytics. The cloud giant said existing AppSheet customers would retain integration with cloud-based data sources such as Amazon Web Services’ DynamoDB and MySQL.
“There is now a tremendous pent-up demand for enterprise automation,” said Praveen Seshadri, CEO of Seattle-based AppSheet. “With the rise of low- and no-code platforms, citizen development has emerged as the strategic way for modern organizations to invest, innovate, and compete.”
