Build apps from a sentence: Opal goes global
Google’s Opal just went global, bringing natural-language no‑code app building to 160+ countries; plus ChatGPT’s interrupt update, Airtable’s Omni, and tools to ship this week.
Welcome to issue #76 of FutureBrief. Three times a week I share practical insights on AI & automation trends, tools, and tutorials for business leaders. If you need support on your technological journey, join our community and get access to group chat, Q&As, workshops, and templates.
Today’s Brief
Google just turned its Labs experiment into a global on-ramp for AI‑powered apps: Opal now ships in 160+ countries and lets you build by describing what you want, then runs it as a working mini app. Today’s briefing breaks down what changed, why it is relevant for you, and how to test it this week.
New “Update” button lets you interrupt ChatGPT mid-response and refine your prompt without losing progress or restarting the entire conversation thread. Saves 30-60 minutes on complex research tasks where you need to course-correct halfway through long outputs.
AI-powered interface in Airtable Omni generation creates custom UI widgets from text prompts (example: “build a 3D model viewer”) without design or coding skills required. Internal teams can build interactive dashboards and data visualization tools in minutes instead of hiring designers or waiting on dev cycles.
Open-source workflow platform Kestra ships AI agent builder and no-code dashboard creator alongside 50+ new community plugins for Google Drive, OneDrive, and enterprise connectors. SMBs can replace Zapier + Looker combos with one self-hosted or cloud platform while building autonomous agents for support routing and ops tasks.
Opal expands: Google’s no‑code platform goes global
Google’s AI no-code builder Opal, which was previously only available in 15 countries, is now available in more than 160. It still emphasizes natural-language creation: “describe what you want,” and you’ll receive a functional mini app with inputs, LLM steps, and outputs. It supports rapid prototyping from text, visual editing, and instant run to validate the result.
Two things just changed for SMBs. First, the barrier to building AI‑assisted workflows dropped again. Non‑technical teams can now ship internal tools and content automations without extra development time. Second, global availability means your team, contractors, and clients can all use the same builder, which removes common rollout friction seen with region‑locked beta versions. Strategically, Opal pressures Zapier/Make on time‑to‑first‑value while pushing n8n users to justify self‑hosting effort for simple prototypes.
What can you do about it?
Run a one‑hour pilot with three use cases: content ops, internal reporting, and lightweight intake. Then benchmark against your current Make/Zapier/n8n scenarios for time‑to‑ship and monthly cost.
Start with Opal’s describe‑and‑generate flow, refine in the visual editor, and validate outputs with a small user group. If you need enterprise connectors, keep Zapier/Make/n8n in play or graduate workloads that exceed Opal’s current ecosystem.
Watch for Labs limitations and plan governance: name owners, define data scopes, and document prompts to avoid shadow IT.
The way how we test it now?
We treat Opal as the fastest lane to test AI app ideas. With this approach we can track the winners and build them in our primary stack. And kill the rest quickly.
In partnership with
Ninjabot responds to inquiries in 10-60 seconds (not hours), reaches out to relevant contacts on social media 24/7 (no spam), warms up your database via SMS/email (including follow-ups), prepares salespeople for each meeting (within 1 minute), takes professional meeting minutes (including follow-ups), negotiates offers, prepares next steps, and much more.
Building modern tech for SMBs? Reach 20,000+ decision-makers who are actively implementing AI, automation, and no-code tools. Become a sponsor
Tool stack
TweetHunter: Grow your Twitter following with AI-powered viral content patterns. Analyzes top tweets, suggests content, auto-schedules.
Taplio: Grow your LinkedIn on autopilot with AI content generation and engagement. Built for founders building personal brands.
Mintly Generate 100+ product videos monthly for $50 instead of $5K traditional shoots; scale content without hiring agencies.
Boost.space: No-code AI platform with “agentic memory” connecting 2,500+ tools. Basically, AI agents that remember your business context.
Kestra: Replace Zapier and Looker with one platform; build AI agents and dashboards without code to cut tool costs by 40-60%.
From the community
In this Reddit thread, real business operators share what succeeded for them in terms of AI and automation. Support ticket routing saved 15 hours weekly, meeting transcription fixed accountability gaps, and churn prediction agents saved three at-risk customers. You’ll find the exact failure pattern (generic “do everything” agents) versus winning approach (single-task, clear rules, existing tool integration). Practical framework for scoping your first AI agent without wasting budget on overambitious projects.
Have a productive day,
Yuri
CEO @ FutureBrief
🔮 Your Crystal Ball for AI & Automation Intelligence