Google acquires Cameyo for virtual Windows apps on ChromeOS

Google has acquired Cameyo to encourage enterprise adoption of ChromeOS by making it easy to run legacy Windows apps.

Cameyo offers a “Virtual App Delivery” (VAD) platform that can stream Windows, Linux, internal web, and SaaS applications. Last year, Google worked with them on deeper ChromeOS integration, specifically for Windows apps.

Essentially, Windows applications are turned into Progressive Web Apps that appear in the ChromeOS launcher/taskbar. These PWAs feature native file system integration to access local files/folders, while there’s full clipboard support. The apps, which can be streamed from the cloud or on-premises data centers, can be set to automatically open specific file types.

The end goal is to make these Windows apps feel native to the end user.

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Google, specifically the ChromeOS team, is now acquiring Cameyo. The plan is to bring this virtualization tech to more enterprise customers. Google says it is “doubling down on [its] commitment to delivering a streamlined experience for virtualized applications.”

In bringing the Cameyo team in-house, Google wants to make ChromeOS synonymous with simplified application deployment, enhanced security, improved productivity, and reduced IT costs. 

We are thrilled to welcome the Cameyo team to Google. As ChromeOS continues to support customers with their transition to a more secure and seamless computing experience, Cameyo has offered a valuable virtualization solution for enterprise customers to deliver key legacy applications via the cloud. Following our partnership over the past few years, we’re looking forward to working more closely with the team to support more customers in their transition to deploy ChromeOS. More to come soon.

Naveen Viswanatha, Head of Product, ChromeOS Commercial Solutions

Google does not have any specifics of what this service will look like today, and will be sharing more details in the future. Cameyo offers a number of non-ChromeOS products today.

This acquisition brings to mind Google’s purchase of CloudReady in 2020, which became ChromeOS Flex to turn old PCs into Chromebooks. That’s primarily for enterprise, but is readily available to consumers.