After a major update to its Chrome OS last year with Aura, Google appears to be readying a new feature: a Notification Center. François Beaufort has spotted templated notifications in the latest Windows Chromium build, part of a new Notification Center. The notifications can be enabled by togging a flag in Chrome's settings, paving the way for users to create their own notifications within a Chrome extension.

Beaufort speculates that that the Notification Center could become a hub for future Google Now support in Chrome OS. A recent code revision to Chromium appears to hint at Google Now card support, with a 'skeleton' framework for the predictive search service. Chrome OS has long supported notifications, but they have been largely hit and miss — supported by a small number of apps. Any move to support Google Now in Chrome OS would bring synergy to Google's ecosystem in a similar way to Apple's move to bring its iOS-like Notification Center to Mountain Lion. With support from major OEMs, Chrome OS looks to be the next major operating system player.