June 2021 Summaries

Google has updated its Passes API to allow the secure storage and access of COVID vaccination and test information on Android devices, with initial availability in the United States and plans to expand to other countries. This feature enables developers from authorized healthcare organizations and public health authorities to create digital versions of COVID Cards, which users can access offline via a shortcut on their home screen. The system requires devices to run Android 5 or later and be Play Protect certified, but does not necessitate the Google Pay app. Privacy and security are prioritized, with information stored exclusively on the user's device without retention by Google, and not shared with Google's services or third parties. Access to these cards is protected by a lock screen and requires authentication through a password, pin, or biometric method.

Google is enhancing account security by banning Google OAuth 2.0 authorization requests in embedded webviews, effective September 30, 2021, due to their security vulnerabilities. Embedded webviews, commonly used in apps, can act as "man in the middle" agents, intercepting communications and compromising user data. This change aligns with IETF guidelines, which discourage using embedded user-agents for authorization in native apps. Developers are urged to update their applications to comply with these new policies by using platform-appropriate OAuth clients. Apps should route links through default web browsers or approved methods like Android Custom Tabs or iOS's SFSafariViewController. Captive networks are advised to adopt new IETF standards for better user experience. Developers should test their apps for compatibility, making necessary adjustments before the enforcement date, and can use specific query parameters for testing and acknowledging the upcoming changes.

Jack Lee successfully expanded the largest Google Developer Student Club (GDSC) in the world at the London School of Economics (LSE) by growing it to 1,600 members in just six months, focusing on diverse student involvement and strategic partnerships. By leveraging his skill in team leadership, Jack fostered a collaborative environment where computer science students and those from non-technical backgrounds, such as business majors, could work together on tech-focused projects, including addressing United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. His approach included organizing over 80 events on topics ranging from web development to career talks, and partnering with six global firms and local sponsors to offer mentorship and networking opportunities. These efforts not only enhanced the tech scene at LSE but also attracted attention from students across Europe and Asia, providing them with learning resources and opportunities, and ultimately creating a robust, supportive community.

Lorena Locks, a Women Techmakers Ambassador and Google Developer Group lead in Floripa, Brazil, spearheaded a Pride Week initiative to bolster the LGBTQIA+ tech community in Brazil, inspired by her experiences hosting meetups that highlighted a lack of representation in the industry. From June 21st to 25th, the event featured over 12 talks and sessions focused on topics like spotting binary designs, building inclusive tech teams, and developing apps for the LGBTQIA+ community, all aimed at fostering inclusive representation and building trust among developers. The initiative drew attention from LGBTQIA+ tech leaders who volunteered as speakers, with all participants coming from the community, making it a highly impactful program that has inspired similar efforts globally.

Coral's latest updates highlight advancements in its platform for building edge machine learning applications, including a critical software update for the Coral Dev Board and SoM to address SoC power configuration issues. A new manufacturing demo showcases simultaneous worker safety and visual inspection tasks using the Coral Edge TPU, while the introduction of WebUSB support enables the Coral USB Accelerator to operate directly from Chrome, enhancing accessibility. A newly released models repository simplifies exploration and selection of pre-trained models for various machine learning tasks such as image classification and object detection, complete with training scripts and example code. Additionally, new Google Colab tutorials facilitate transfer learning for object detection with MobileDet and EfficientDet-Lite models, demonstrating Coral's commitment to evolving its edge ML platform and offering tools to support developers in creating task-specific models.

Applications are open until July 19 for the Google for Startups Accelerator: Women Founders program, which aims to support women-led startups in North America by addressing technical challenges and offering tailored programming to overcome the barriers women founders face. Launched last year, the program seeks to mitigate the impact of gender disparities and the exacerbated effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on women in the workforce. With women-led startups receiving only 2.3% of global venture capitalist funding in 2020, the accelerator provides mentorship, technical project support, and workshops on product design, customer acquisition, and leadership development. The program, which will select 10-12 startups with at least one woman founder, runs from September to December 2021 and includes opportunities to engage with a variety of speakers and facilitators.

Google Cloud has introduced "Serverless Migration Station," a series of learning modules combining codelabs and companion videos aimed at helping developers modernize their serverless applications, particularly those using App Engine. These modules focus on key migrations such as moving from App Engine's original ndb library to Cloud NDB to facilitate Datastore access outside of App Engine, transitioning to Cloud Run to leverage containerization for improved portability and reproducibility, and migrating to Cloud Tasks for enhanced task management capabilities. The tutorials are part of the Serverless Expeditions series, featuring interactive content that guides developers through various modernization techniques, starting with a Python 2 App Engine application. The initiative not only addresses Python 2 and App Engine users but also extends to Python 3 and other platforms, with plans to support additional legacy languages in the future, aiming to bolster developers' ability to leverage ongoing product innovations within Google Cloud.

Published in 2021, the Google Pay plugin for Magento 2, which was sunset in 2022, initially offered merchants a seamless way to integrate Google Pay into their checkout systems, supporting Magento versions 2.3 and 2.4 and offering compatibility with the Cybersource payment gateway. The plugin provided a frictionless and secure checkout experience by allowing consumers to use stored payment credentials from their Google Accounts, leading to reduced data entry errors and higher conversion rates. Developed in collaboration with Unbound Commerce, the plugin was free to use and supported integration with various payment service providers like Adyen, Braintree, and Stripe. Merchants could easily download, install, and configure the plugin through the Magento Marketplace, requiring only a Google Pay merchant identifier for setup. The integration process included testing in a Sandbox environment before launching the payment method on the merchant's site, offering advanced settings for customization, and requiring submission of website integration details in the Google Pay Business Console.

Developing custom Google Chat bots can significantly enhance user interaction by streamlining workflows and providing real-time information and notifications. To improve usability, Google has introduced two key features: slash commands and dialogs. Slash commands simplify user interaction by allowing users to type “/” to access a list of bot functions, which streamlines command execution and enhances user experience. Dialogs, on the other hand, provide a structured interface for capturing user inputs, making interactions more intuitive and reducing reliance on natural language processing. These features are integrated into the Google Workspace Add-on Card framework, enabling developers to create consistent and modern user interfaces. Implementing these features can increase bot adoption and facilitate more complex use cases, ultimately enriching the user experience.

Google has announced the open-sourcing of a general-purpose transpiler for Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE), a technology that allows encrypted data to be processed without decryption, thus safeguarding privacy. This breakthrough enables developers to conduct computations on encrypted data, opening avenues for creating applications that assure data privacy, such as those in medical research where sensitive data can be analyzed without exposure. The initiative aligns with Google's commitment to privacy-preserving technologies, building on past innovations like Federated Learning and Differential Privacy, which have seen global applications. Google emphasizes the importance of collaboration with the developer community to enhance these technologies and foresees FHE as pivotal in advancing a more private and secure Internet over the next decade.

Josue Gutierrez, a Google Developer Expert (GDE) specializing in Maps, Web, Identity, and Angular, shares his journey from Mexico to Germany and his involvement in the global Google Developers community. Currently working at Boehringer Ingelheim, Josue has a background in computer science and front-end development, having worked on various projects aimed at enhancing customer experiences. His passion for web technologies led him to establish an Angular community in Mexico City and actively participate in Google developer groups, fostering learning and collaboration among peers. Despite the challenges of 2020, Josue embraced virtual tools to maintain connections and expand his reach, leading to the creation of a Maps developer community in Germany. He values the Google Maps Platform for its versatility in ecommerce and logistics, and his current projects involve experimenting with real-time data integration. Looking ahead, Josue aims to continue sharing knowledge and building communities while excelling in his professional role.

Google's IT Residency Program (ITRP) was launched over a decade ago to provide exceptional tech support and empower aspiring IT professionals through a structured learning and development framework. The program offers participants hands-on experience in various Google functions, equipping them for long-term careers in technology. Participants, like Kate Grant, who transitioned from anthropology to IT, gain valuable skills across diverse technical environments and roles, such as site reliability engineering and program management. The program encourages growth through real-world experience, mentoring, and exposure to different tech challenges, emphasizing that success is defined by individual goals and curiosity rather than a predetermined path. Kate's journey illustrates the program's impact, as she progressed from an IT Resident to an Operations Manager, reflecting the transformative potential of ITRP in shaping versatile tech careers.

Smart home developers can now enhance user engagement by incorporating proactive notifications and follow-up responses into Smart Home Actions, allowing for timely alerts about significant device events like deliveries or unlocked doors. These notifications, which can occur without user prompts or as confirmations of fulfilled requests, utilize unique event IDs to direct them to the correct users and devices, such as Google Home Smart Speakers or Nest Smart Displays. By enabling these notifications, users can receive additional details like error codes or event timestamps, enhancing their smart home experience. Developers can update existing devices to support these features by modifying the device definition and using the Home Graph API to accommodate state changes. The initiative includes support for traits like LockUnlock and ObjectDetection and encourages developers to provide feedback and engage with the community through platforms like Twitter and Reddit.

In the first quarter of 2021, the Machine Learning Google Developers Experts (ML GDEs) community made significant contributions to the global ML ecosystem despite challenges posed by the ongoing pandemic. They launched an ML GDE YouTube channel, led by US-based GDE Margaret Maynard-Reid, which features a variety of content, including technical talks, tutorials, and interviews. Seventeen ML GDEs participated in the TensorFlow Everywhere event, delivering sessions on new TensorFlow features. Events marking International Women's Day saw active participation from GDEs in Saudi Arabia and India, while mentoring efforts were ongoing globally with initiatives like Brazil's Google Fast Track program. Highlights also include the release of a "Machine Learning using TensorFlow Cookbook" in Europe and various talks showcasing ML applications, such as a project for the visually impaired in Nepal. On the Google Cloud Platform front, GDEs produced educational content and analyses on ML pipelines, AI, and cloud cost management, further contributing to the vibrant ML community.

Google Play is enhancing its support for indie game developers through the Indie Games Accelerator and Indie Games Festival, both of which are open for submissions. These initiatives aim to foster growth for small game studios by providing mentorship, education, and promotional opportunities. The Accelerator program offers a 12-week online course featuring access to Google and industry experts, ideal for developers close to launching a new game or who have recently released a title. Conversely, the Festival focuses on showcasing high-quality games that have already been launched, offering developers the chance to win promotional campaigns and be featured on the Google Play store. This year, the programs have expanded to include more eligible markets, with developers from over 70 countries able to apply, and will feature fully digital event experiences.