Set up a Google Cloud Project

• Create a new Google Cloud project or use an existing one.
• Enable the "Vertex AI", "Cloud Retail API", and "Cloud Storage" APIs for your project.
• Ensure that billing is enabled for your Google Cloud project.
• Set up authentication by creating a service account:
• Go to the Google Cloud Console.
• Navigate to IAM & Admin -> Service Accounts.
• Click "Create Service Account".
• Provide a name and description, then click "Create".
• Assign the roles "Vertex AI Admin", "Retail Admin", and "Storage Admin".
• Click "Continue" and then "Done".
• Generate a JSON key for the service account and save it securely.

Prepare the Vertex AI Search Index

• You will need to create a retail catalog and upload product data:
• Navigate to the Retail section in Google Cloud Console.
• Use the Cloud Shell or any gRPC client to create a catalog and upload product data in the required format.
• Ensure your product data is properly indexed and searchable.

Install the Bubble Plugin for API Connector

• Inside your Bubble app, go to the Plugins tab.
• Click "Add plugins" and search for "API Connector".
• Install the API Connector plugin.

Set Up API Authentication and Connection

• Open the API Connector plugin settings.
• Create a new API and name it "Google Vertex AI Search".
• Click "Add another Header" and input:
• Key: Authorization
• Value: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN
• Get the access token using the service account JSON key generated earlier:
• Use the Google OAuth 2.0 JWT token generation process to generate a Bearer token (access token).

Configure API Endpoints in Bubble

• Within the API Connector, under "Google Vertex AI Search":
• Click "Add another API call".
• Name this call "Search Product".
• Set the method to POST.
• Use the URL: https://retail.googleapis.com/v2/projects/YOUR_PROJECT_ID/locations/global/catalogs/default_catalog/branches/default_branch:search
• Add headers:
  • Content-Type: application/json
• In the Body section, input the JSON body as required by Vertex AI Search for retail:
  ```json
  {
  "query": "",
  "pageSize": 10,
  "offset": 0
  }
  ```
• Click "Initialize Call" to test this API call.
• Once initialized, save the changes.

Design the Bubble App UI for Search

• Create a new page or use an existing one in Bubble.
• Add an input field where users can type in their search queries.
• Add a button to trigger the search action.
• Add a repeating group to display the search results.

Set Up Workflows to Handle Search

• Click on the button to add a new workflow.
• When the button is clicked:
• Start a new workflow item to "Run API Call".
• Choose the "Search Product" call configured earlier.
• Pass the input field value to the "query" parameter in the API call.
• Update the repeating group data source to display the search results:
• Set Type of Content to the type that matches your product data.
• Set Data source to be the results of the API call.

Test the Integration

• Preview your Bubble application.
• Enter a search term in the input field and click the search button.
• Ensure the results are displayed correctly in the repeating group based on your search query.

Handle Errors and Edge Cases

• Add error handling to manage API call failures.
• Display user-friendly error messages if the search returns no products or if there is an issue with the API call.
• Optionally, include loading spinners or indicators while the API call is being processed.

Deploy Your Application

• Once you have thoroughly tested the integration and ensured everything works as expected, you can deploy your Bubble app.
• Monitor the performance and make adjustments as necessary based on user feedback and additional testing.