Android apps can be launched in the future without installation

Google is working on a new feature for Android called Instant Apps. This means that it is no longer necessary to install an app to use it. For example, users can send each other a link, which, when clicked, immediately starts the app.

For Instant Apps to work, Android connects to the Google Play Store in the background, downloading only the parts of the app that are needed at the time. To make apps suitable for this functionality, developers have to split their app into different modules. As soon as a user opens the app from a link, only the necessary modules need to be loaded.

According to Google, the function is useful for, for example, apps from museums and for applications that allow you to pay for a parking space. Such apps are only useful in a specific location and will almost never be used otherwise. With Instant Apps, installing such apps is no longer necessary.

B&H Photo Video, a large store that sells camera equipment, has teamed up with Google to create a demo and uses Instant Apps to let users log in with a fingerprint and use Android Pay. It is not known when the feature will be released, but Google has already announced that the Instant Apps function will be compatible with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and later versions.