Introducing the Airtable Connected Apps Platform™

[Kelly_OShaughne]

:wave: Hi all! I’m Kelly - a product manager at Airtable focused on helping users build powerful, secure apps for their org. I’m excited to introduce some powerful new features (including my personal favorite, granular permissions), as well as a new way to think about what you’re building in Airtable.

Today most teams have the autonomy to choose the software and tools that work best for them. While this allows teams to move fast, it can also create massive data silos, misalignment, and disjointed collaboration. There’s critical data spread across dozens of applications, and no team has access to all of it, which can cause work to slow way down

We believe it’s time to reject the trade-off between moving fast and moving together. That’s why we’re introducing the Airtable Connected Apps Platform™.

The Airtable Connected Apps Platform™ lets every team create powerful applications to be shared across the organization, built on shared company data, and on the same connected platform.

Building apps in Airtable isn’t new. To help teams create even better apps, we’re releasing new features to make them more powerful, more secure, and more connected.

Updates available today:
We’re rolling these updates out over the course of the day; if you don’t see them reflected in your workspace, hold tight! You should see them updated by the end of the day.

Interface Designer is now officially out of beta for all Airtable users. You can transform data into intuitive and interactive app interfaces that can be quickly customized for each team member. These foundational updates and improvements make it easier for your team to interact with your app. New updates to Interface Designer include:

• A redesigned editor in the sidebar provides a central place to make changes to your interface—all in real-time and keeping your canvas clutter-free. Whether you’re using a calendar to track deadlines or a visual gallery to look through creative assets, you can easily manage what you show and how it appears from a single location With the new editor, it only takes a click to change how your data is visualized.

• A new top navigation bar within your interface allows your users to easily navigate between relevant pages in a cinch

• And, our new full page record detail experience gives you the ability to fully customize what others can see and edit when they click into the details of a record. So if you want your team to update project status without seeing every project detail you’re tracking, you can customize exactly which fields they can view and edit.

Introducing granular permissions. Now, Pro and Enterprise users can decide how others interact with your app. Gone are the days of setting up a new personal view, shared view, or base to customize data for every new collaborator, department lead, or team. Now, you can simply drag and drop the data you want to share into an Interface, add rules and a dynamic current-user filter to personalize content for each collaborator, and share the Interface to the intended audience(s).

So, whether you want to share the entire app, only certain pieces via an interface, or choose exactly what data is shown to each user —your app is as dynamic and secure as you choose it to be. New updates to permissions include:

• The ability to share an interface without sharing the underlying base through Interface-only editor, commenter, and read-only permission levels. You can share interfaces via email or invite link, and choose to share silently when you don’t want an email notification firing off to a large group.
• Current-user filter improvements to personalize interface content. Add an element filter specified to “Viewer’s records only” to ensure each user only sees records tagged to them so they get all the information they need, and none that they don’t. You can also let end users adjust the filter themselves based on their needs by adding a Filter element and match a collaborator or email field to the current user. If you’re on Airtable Enterprise, you can also add a group user filter, and end users will be able to see tasks associated with their group.
• Admin panel support for Enterprise admins to manage interfaces. Admins will be able to see who’s creating or using interfaces as well as who has access to each interface.

Coming soon:

• Redesigned home screen: Discover and access the apps your organization relies on, right from the new home screen. Enterprise customers can opt into the new home screen today. We’ll be rolling out the new home screen to all users over the next few months.
• Interface insights: Coming in the next few weeks, Enterprise users will now be able to see exactly how interfaces are being used
• Verified data: Publish and mark key data so everyone can build apps with the same, accurate information. Verified data is currently in development and will be available in early 2023.
• Data map: Visualize your data and how everything connects, so you can build, manage, and scale work. Data map is currently in development and will be available in early 2023.
• Two-way sync: Automatically update data across multiple apps to ensure information is always current. Two way sync is currently in limited availability for Enterprise customers. It will be available more broadly in early 2023.
• Apps by Airtable: Get started faster with apps that can be used straight out of the box—each is hand-built for an essential use case—and based on industry best practices. The first set of these apps will be available in early 2023.

Learn more about these updates and what a connected apps platform can do for you and your team in our blog post!

Additional resources:

• Support Article: Interface Designer overview
• Support Article: Interface Designer permissions
• Support Article: Managing and sharing Interfaces

We can’t wait to hear what you think, and see what you build, with these updates!

We would also love to have you join us for a Community AMA on October 27 at 9 am PT where we will talk about all the updates to Interface Designer. I’ll be sharing some of our thinking behind these features, and will also be available to answer all your burning questions! You can register here and we hope to see you there!

[Databaser]

Hendrik_Yang:

It would be extremely great if Airtable add pricing for interface or app-only users (similar to Google Workspace Frontline)

For a portal functionality, which is what we really asked for, it’s better to have a fixed pricing tier than to pay per user imo. Who wants to start paying whatever amount for 800 user for example? Maybe 750 of them only need to edit 2 fields in 1 year…

[Karlstens]

Thanks for the post Kelly. Lots of things happening!

I have some suggestions from my day-to-day users of must have features - We’re needing;

An Interface Button that connects to Extension Functions - such as an interface button that connects to the Print Button within the Base Extensions Page Designer App. My users want to be able to print from that app without leaving the interface. Currently, it’s only possible to access Extensions via the Base Extensions tab, which is costing them time and too many page clicks. It’s confusing, especially for new users where our desire is to keep them within an Interface.

Interface Filter Elements are missing “OR” operands.
If you compare the Interface Filter Element that controls a Timeline Element, to a Timeline View with the table filters, you’ll see the Timeline View has a complete feature set of And, Or, Grouped filters - whilst the Interface Filter Element is hardcoded with AND. It’s a deal breaker.

Lack of Colours, no dynamic colour changes - I can’t detail enough just how much of an impact colours make on visually impaired users, or new users needing colours to clarify regions within an interface. Null, grey and one colour simply doesn’t cut it. Make Interfaces tie in with the colours specified within Select and Multi-select fields please. I want an entire (or regions of the) interface to light up in RED when that records Select field has a red option selected.

Searchable Linked Record secondary fields - It’s great we can show multiple fields within the Linked View cards, but it’s very frustrating that these fields aren’t searchable! Currently, only the Linked Field primary field returns upon searching - but users are absolutely needing the ability to search for any field that’s deemed visible within the Linked Card.

More options for Text sizes, that are standardised for all fields - regardless of Link, Multiselect, Text, Rollup, Lookup - we need the same text display appearance options for all fields. Sometimes we want pillform, other times we just want bold large letters in italics. Interface designers shouldn’t be limited in the ways fields may appear on their interface, just due to the type of field being referenced.

[Hendrik_Yang]

That would be a role of commenter I think. But I do like to see pricing based on app maker / editor not on app user.

[Londya_E]

Editing to add: I am using a workaround, using the record picker to add quick changes for now, but it’s great to know this change is soon to follow. Looking forward to it. Thanks Airtable team. You guys are doing amazing!!!

OK so I’ve been working in my interface app for less than 20 minutes and I have already found a problem with my workflow. I made a central dashboard page where I can update tasks from without having to leave the dashboard. I also have a time tracking table linked to that task. I don’t like the fact that if I click the time tracking record (and I have “allow users to open record details enabled”), it takes me to a new page. I liked the fact that it would not open the record in a new page, but in a modal, like in the first pic. When I just want to enter a quick datapoint, this slows down my workflow significantly. Today, I will have to work in bases because of this. You guys should allow us to have an “open in a new tab” option, or “Open in modal” option (i prefer the latter). And now, after the update, if I go back and toggle “allow users to open record” off, when I try to click on the record it just doesn’t open up at all - it doesn’t go back to being a modal, like it was before. I can only edit the fields when I initially click the “add record” button to add a new time tracking record. Frustrating.

[Joanna_Parker]

I’m just wanting to say an absolutely massive thank you to the developers for this. It has been so much fun playing with Interfaces and watching updates and feedback being implemented in real time. I am genuinely amazed at how quickly this has been released and we are so so grateful. :star_struck: :pray:

Obviously it’s not the finished product just yet, and there will be always more tweaks/updates needed. But this new functionality has already accelerated our organisation beyond what we could currently achieve, and this new platform design will absolutely slingshot us forward. :rocket:

All of your hard work will be making a huge difference, so please pass on our appreciation.

[Ruchika_Abbi1]

Loving the updates! Can’t wait to try everything out. Still a little confused on the terminology though.

1. Do Interface pages mean the Top level tabs that now show up?

2. When we say sharing the Interface, are we sharing the Interface or each Interface page? For eg. in my example, the Interface would be Tasks & Invoices and the Pages would be Create New Task…

3. Interface Collaborators, can they be users outside the Airtable system? Similar to how sharing Airtable forms was? Essentially can I share the Interface link the way I could share Airtable form link?

4. Currently I’ve been sharing the Interface Page (?) Link in Automations with Base collaborators. This is the link that is in the URL. Will they still be able to access the Interface Page through that link or will I need to specifically Share the Link with them?

Thanks!

[kuovonne]

I totally understand how creators of Airtable interfaces want their customers to be able to update data in an interface without having to pay full price for all those additional users.

I am sure that Airtable is aware of this desire, but it takes a lot of work to implement this. They have to both figure out a pricing model, and build the underlying technology to support that pricing model.

All of that takes careful planning and a lot of time. And Airtable has demonstrated that they like to release things in phases. For example, this newest feature that allows users to see only their records in the interface without access to the rest of the base required the ability to add values to the users/collaborators field that were not members of the base. That feature was quietly released a while back when it was ready. While slightly useful by itself, it really was essential groundwork for the current interface-only access. In that same way, this current method of having interface-only editors being paid collaborators is a required engineering groundwork before it is possible to have a new pricing model.

It would be nice if the workflow for sharing an interface stated that there would be additional cost associated with sharing the interface with edit permissions. However, that is not as clear cut as it might appear. The base cannot know who is already a paid collaborator or not. The person could be a paid collaborator with edit access to a different base in the same workspace (or even a different workspace in an Enterprise plan), and the base cannot have access to this information. Careful wording could be added to indicate that there might be additional charges and to contact an administrator if not sure.

[Aristeidis_Zagk]

always so nice points by @kuovonne , absolutely agree! :grinning:

[Emily_Sermons]

Hi @Londya_E — thanks for the note! I hear you on the modal feeling a bit more “lightweight” than the full page experience.

One of our fast follows is to allow builders to choose between viewing the detail pages as a modal or a full page; this should be rolling out in a few weeks, so stay tuned! You won’t need to do any extra design work, you can just one-click choose to view it as a modal as soon as the functionality is released.

[Emily_Sermons]

Hi @Ruchika_Abbi1! So glad you’re loving the updates. We’re working with our learning and support team to make sure all of the terminology is up to date — in the meantime, here’s some answers to your questions!

1. Yes — Pages are the top level tabs that show up. An Interface is a collection of pages.
2. Sharing is at the interface level — meaning that all published pages get shared. (Note that you can “hide” pages from your top nav bar in the properties panel, but these pages are still accessible by URL).
3. At this time, Interface Collaborators must have an Airtable account — different from how base forms work today.
4. Base collaborators today still have access to the Interface, so no need to share it with them again! Copying the URL should still work just fine for your usecase.

Hope this is helpful!