.NET MAUI – Google Assistance integration

Question

Goal

I'm building a native app using .NET MAUI, aiming for a hands-free user experience. Ideally, a user should be able to say:

"Hello Google, give me info about {registration number}."

This command should open my app, Vehicle Info, which would then retrieve vehicle data from the backend via an Intent and read it aloud. While I’ve implemented most of the functionality, I’m struggling with making Google Assistant interact with my app through intents.

Issue

I can’t seem to get even the basic functionality to work, such as:

"Hello Google, open Vehicle Info."

Instead of opening my app, Google Assistant only retrieves information from the web.

My Background

I’m new to .NET MAUI and Android development but have extensive experience with .NET. Any guidance on configuring intents for Google Assistant integration would be greatly appreciated.

What I’ve Tried

Here's what I've set up in code so far:

1. Published the app to Play Store under internal testing. This is because i'm unable to get the app working with Android Studio to debug the intents and utilize the Google Assistance plugin. So im testing it live instead.

2. MainActivity.cs: Added an OnCreate function, which I’ve confirmed is called when the app opens. Here, the intent should be filtered and responded to.

3. strings.xml: Added under Resources/values. Contains a string named shortcut_vehicle_info.

4. shortcuts.xml: Added under Resources/xml. Includes a shortcut that links to the shortcut_vehicle_info string as an intent. (I've faced challenges configuring this part correctly.)

5. AndroidManifest.xml: Configured to reference shortcuts.xml as a resource, including activity and intent filters.

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So, am i even on the right track here, I do not see many threads about this at all. Any advice on making the app compatible with Google Assistant commands, particularly for hands-free interaction, would be immensely helpful!

• Morrison Chang: Can you clarify how you are doing testing. Are you following: Google Assistant plugin for Android Studio and being aware of the limitations? Also realize that "vehicle info" is too common a phrase for an app name and that the voice operation is a the discretion of Google.
• Albin Pettersson: Thank you for the commet! Yes I have been following this. However, I am building the app in Visual Studio and its a .NET MAUI Blazor Hybrid app. As of this I'm unable to even get the Android Studio build the app let alone getting the Google Assistant or alternative plugins working since newer versions of Android Studio simply does not support the plugins. Again, thats why i'm testing it live via Google Play store instead. I will however try to redeploy the app with a much more specific/unique name.
• G43beli: @AlbinPettersson did you have any luck in implementing Google Assistant in .NET MAUI?