Unless you’re a programmer, the thought of developing an app is an intimidating proposition.  But today, Google made things a bit easier for the proletariat with the Android App Inventor.

The App Inventor provides users with a GUI for developing applications.  The program uses the Open Blocks Java Library to allow users to simply drag and drop elements into an Android application.  The video below shows how easily an app can be created.

The App Inventor gives users access to the GPS sensor, texting and the web.  There’s really a lot of potential here, and we appreciate Google’s effort to make Android app development accessible to the average user.

Apple’s App Store has about 300,000 apps, compared to less than 100,000 apps in the Android Market.  But the Android App Inventor should help to close this gap – the only question is will the apps developed in the App Inventor be any good?  Only time will tell.

In the meantime, you can request access to the App Inventor here.  Google will be granting access to the program over the next few weeks.