From The Verge: The @ symbol is about to become the most important feature in Google Docs. As Google continues to invest in making Workspace a more connected and powerful platform, it’s also opening Docs up to third-party developers in a big way. Going forward, all you’ll need to type is “@” and the name of a file or app you’re looking for, and you’ll be able to see and edit it from within Google Docs.
The feature is called “smart chips” and refers to essentially embedding other apps into Google Docs. The API that makes all this work is new — Google announced it at its Cloud Next conference along with a handful of partners. Asana users will be able to manage their tasks through an embed in Docs; you’ll be able to see visual previews of Miro and Figma boards, though there’s no in-Docs editing power there yet; and you’ll be able to see live-updating analytics through Tableau.
The underlying shift here is a huge one, and Google’s actually late to it. Notion, Coda, and other apps have grown popular by evolving digital documents into low-code website builders. You can embed YouTube videos and PDF files, work with your spreadsheets, and manage a kanban board, all within a single “document.” Google Docs, meanwhile, has long been stuck emulating an 8.5 x 11 piece of paper.
But through Google’s “smart canvas” concept, the company is trying to catch up quickly. Many of the concepts that power the idea, like a borderless page and all these third-party app embeds, will eventually also come to tools like Slides and Sheets, but Docs is an obviously useful place to start.
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