On the Create App page, under Recommendations engine, click
Create.
In the Your app name field, enter a name for your app. Your app ID
appears under the engine name.
Optional: Click Edit to edit your app ID.
Click Continue.
To connect to a data store, on the Data Stores page, select a data store
that contains structured data or choose to create a data store.
Do one of the following:
Select an existing data store, if one is available. A data store can be
attached to only one app, and it can't be removed from the app later.
Create a new structured data store and ingest data into it. Do this by
clicking Create data store and following the steps in the Create a
new data store pane that opens. Then select your new data store. For
more information about creating a data store, see Create a
custom recommendations data store.
Optional: To see a list of unavailable data stores, click Learn why.
A table is displayed with a list of data stores and the reason why they are
unavailable. Here are some of the reasons why a data store might be
unavailable:
Your data store type allows connection to only one app and the data
store is already connected.
Your data store and your app are in different regions.
Your data store and your app are of different types. For example, you
cannot connect a media data store to a custom recommendations app.
Your data store has basic website search, whereas a
custom recommendations app requires a data store with advanced website indexing.
Click Create.
REST
Before you use the command line to create an app, you must have an existing data
store. If you don't have a data store, create one following the steps in
Create a custom recommendations data store.
To use the command line to create a recommendations app, follow these steps:
Find your data store ID. If you already have your data store
ID, skip to the next step.
In the Google Cloud console, go to the AI Applications page and
in the navigation menu, click Data Stores.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Hard to understand","hardToUnderstand","thumb-down"],["Incorrect information or sample code","incorrectInformationOrSampleCode","thumb-down"],["Missing the information/samples I need","missingTheInformationSamplesINeed","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-08-26 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eThis feature is currently in Preview, subject to the Pre-GA Offerings Terms, which may include limited support and potential incompatibility with other pre-GA versions.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eYou can create a generic recommendations app using the Google Cloud console by navigating to the Agent Builder page, creating a new app, and connecting it to a structured data store, which can be either an existing one or a new one that you create.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eTo create a recommendations app via the command line (REST), you must first have an existing data store, and you will need to use \u003ccode\u003ecurl\u003c/code\u003e with your project ID, app ID, app display name, and data store ID in the request.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eA data store can be connected to only one app, and once connected, it cannot be removed from that app.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eWhen connecting a data store to an app, it may be unavailable due to various reasons, such as already being connected to another app, being in a different region, or being an incompatible data store type.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],[],null,["# Create a custom recommendations app\n\n| **Note:** This feature is a Preview offering, subject to the \"Pre-GA Offerings Terms\" of the [GCP Service Specific Terms](https://cloud.google.com/terms/service-terms). Pre-GA products and features may have limited support, and changes to pre-GA products and features may not be compatible with other pre-GA versions. For more information, see the [launch stage descriptions](https://cloud.google.com/products#product-launch-stages). Further, by using this feature, you agree to the [Generative AI Preview terms and conditions](https://cloud.google.com/trustedtester/aitos) (\"Preview Terms\"). For this feature, you can process personal data as outlined in the [Cloud Data Processing Addendum](https://cloud.google.com/terms/data-processing-terms), subject to applicable restrictions and obligations in the Agreement (as defined in the Preview Terms).\n|\n| \u003cbr /\u003e\n|\nThis page describes how to create a custom recommendations app. \n\n### Console\n\nTo use the Google Cloud console to create a custom recommendations app, follow\nthese steps:\n\n1. In the Google Cloud console, go to the **AI Applications** page.\n\n [AI Applications](https://console.cloud.google.com/gen-app-builder/engines)\n2. On the **Apps** page, click **Create app**.\n\n3. On the **Create App** page, under **Recommendations engine** , click\n **Create**.\n\n4. In the **Your app name** field, enter a name for your app. Your app ID\n appears under the engine name.\n\n5. Optional: Click **Edit** to edit your app ID.\n\n6. Click **Continue**.\n\n7. To connect to a data store, on the **Data Stores** page, select a data store\n that contains structured data or choose to create a data store.\n Do one of the following:\n\n - Select an existing data store, if one is available. A data store can be\n attached to only one app, and it can't be removed from the app later.\n\n - Create a new structured data store and ingest data into it. Do this by\n clicking **Create data store** and following the steps in the **Create a\n new data store** pane that opens. Then select your new data store. For\n more information about creating a data store, see [Create a\n custom recommendations data store](/generative-ai-app-builder/docs/create-data-store-recommendations).\n\n8. Optional: To see a list of unavailable data stores, click **Learn why**.\n\n A table is displayed with a list of data stores and the reason why they are\n unavailable. Here are some of the reasons why a data store might be\n unavailable:\n - Your data store type allows connection to only one app and the data store is already connected.\n - Your data store and your app are in different regions.\n - Your data store and your app are of different types. For example, you cannot connect a media data store to a custom recommendations app.\n - Your data store has basic website search, whereas a custom recommendations app requires a data store with advanced website indexing.\n9. Click **Create**.\n\n### REST\n\nBefore you use the command line to create an app, you must have an existing data\nstore. If you don't have a data store, create one following the steps in\n[Create a custom recommendations data store](/generative-ai-app-builder/docs/create-data-store-recommendations).\n| **Note:** This feature is experimental.\n\nTo use the command line to create a recommendations app, follow these steps:\n\n1. Find your data store ID. If you already have your data store\n ID, skip to the next step.\n\n 1. In the Google Cloud console, go to the **AI Applications** page and\n in the navigation menu, click **Data Stores**.\n\n [Go to the Data Stores page](https://console.cloud.google.com/gen-app-builder/data-stores)\n 2. Click the name of your data store.\n\n 3. On the **Data** page for your data store, get the data store ID.\n\n2. Create an app and connect it to a structured data store. A data store\n can be attached to only one app and can't be removed from the app later.\n\n **Key Term:** In Vertex AI Search, the term *app* can be used interchangeably with the term *engine* in the context of APIs. \n\n curl -X POST \\\n -H \"Authorization: Bearer $(gcloud auth print-access-token)\" \\\n -H \"Content-Type: application/json\" \\\n -H \"X-Goog-User-Project: \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003ePROJECT_ID\u003c/var\u003e\" \\\n \"https://discoveryengine.googleapis.com/v1alpha/projects/\u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003ePROJECT_ID\u003c/var\u003e/locations/global/collections/default_collection/engines?engineId=\u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eAPP_ID\u003c/var\u003e\" \\\n -d '{\n \"displayName\": \"\u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eAPP_DISPLAY_NAME\u003c/var\u003e\",\n \"dataStoreIds\": [\"\u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eDATA_STORE_ID\u003c/var\u003e\"],\n \"solutionType\": [\"SOLUTION_TYPE_RECOMMENDATION\"],\n \"similarDocumentsConfig\": {}\n }'\n\n Replace the following:\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003ePROJECT_ID\u003c/var\u003e: the ID of your Google Cloud project.\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eAPP_ID\u003c/var\u003e: the ID of the recommendations app that you want to create.\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eAPP_DISPLAY_NAME\u003c/var\u003e: the display name of the recommendations app that you want to create.\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eDATA_STORE_ID\u003c/var\u003e: the ID of an existing recommendations data store that you want to add to the recommendations app.\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\nWhat's next\n-----------\n\n- To preview how your recommendations appear, see [Get recommendations](/generative-ai-app-builder/docs/preview-recommendations)."]]