QR codes are those square barcode-looking things that when scanned by your iPhone 16 Pro, Galaxy S25 Ultra or any other phone, can send you straight to a particular webpage or to download an app ...

Google’s latest Code Scanner API in GMS can auto-zoom and read QR codes from a distance using machine learning. It lets developers embed the feature into apps.

It's expected to work in both Google's own QR Code Scanner and in other apps. Because this is an API-level upgrade, app developers won't have to grant any new camera permissions for the tool to work.