Google LLC is making developers’ and business users’ work easier today with the general availability of Application Integration, a standalone integration service that allows developers to connect application logic chains together and automate processes visually, without complex code.

Application Integration acts as a cloud-native product that automates business processes by connecting any application, either within an organization or third-party software-as-a-service, with a simple point-and-click interface. Users can quickly configure workflows, triggers and transformations that will allow them to build simple and complex processes that scale with their needs.

The original Integration capability was launched as an add-on for Google Cloud’s Apigee API Management two years ago. Now it’s available as a standalone product so users don’t need an Apigee account. The service builds on Google’s resources, expertise and customer feedback during those two years and the understanding that customers need to connect to these capabilities directly from the Google Cloud console.

Amit Zavery, vice president and head of platform at Google Cloud, told SiliconANGLE in an interview that businesses today are overwhelmed by application processes and bogged down by connecting them together.

“In the past when changes were required to code you had to call IT and just have them do it,” Zavery said. “A lot of the time business users are a lot more aware of business processes than others would be so we’re empowering them and giving them the tools to make this integration happen faster.”

With access to a visual integration designer, developers can quickly put together processes using a library of more than 75 application connectors that include Google’s own cloud services and third-party services. That means customers can easily integrate BigQuery, Cloud Spanner, Cloud SQL or reach out to services such as Splunk, Shopify, Zendesk and Salesforce.

If a company needs a bespoke process it needs to integrate internally, Zavery said, Google provides a software development kit that allows developers to bring their own tools to the table to build their own connectors. The integrations can also send email, connect via REST API, FTP and other internet connections as well in order to communicate.

“We also have another 50 to 60 connectors in preview,” Zavery said. “The idea is to provide connectivity to anything and everything a customer might need right now and anything they might need in the future.”

The number of applications organizations use today is increasing. A recent report from Accenture estimated the average number of different apps used by large businesses was more than 500 and noted that eight out of 10 planned to buy more from multiple different vendors. Thatg behavior would only set them up to build even more complex workflows than before, Zavery explained.

“Customers are looking to solve integration a little more holistically and end-to-end,” Zavery said. “Instead of getting four or even 15 different things and managing them as an IT project, it can be more like an app or as a service, which brings a lot more clarity.”

Application Integration is available today with a free tier for people who want to test it out for up to 400 integration executions. It’s a pay-as-you-go experience that only costs as much as it’s used. Enterprise customers can also get a subscription service to maintain predictable costs at large scale. More information is available on Google Cloud’s Application Integration page.

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