Google has marketing clout and web presence like no other (this is obvious). They also have incredible staying power, so if I am investing time into using an application, and I have 2 alternatives that are similar functionally, I would take the one with the best chance of future survival, and that is clearly Google. I guess the option they have is to create some amazing functionality that Google doesn't have in their version, and sell it to Google if Google's app is any good.

I guess we won't know until Google launches what they have. Zenter - Launch First and soon!! Very soon.

Btw: At Startup school, a guy from Google asked us about our startup and what we were doing, etc. It was clear they were looking for ideas there.

That sounds more like an interested hacker from Google who was genuinely curious about your project (like everyone else there), rather than a planted corporate development spy itching to report his scoops to home base.

Not that I think google is out of ideas. They probably have too many ideas.