But that was then, and this is now. Nowadays an increasing number of mobile apps is functionally identical to the mobile websites that they are intended to replace, and the recording of the developer of Instant apps was minimal. Even in 2017, loading an app instead of a website had a limited use. As a result, most of us probably only came across a handful of turning in all those years that it was an option for developers.
To use the function, which was delivered to almost all Android devices by Google Play Services, developers had to make a special “instant” version of their app that was less than 15 MB. The extra legwork to get an app for a subset of new users meant that this would always be a steep climb, and Google is struggling to encourage developers to adopt new functions. Moreover, there is no way to cram in generative AI! So it's not a shock to see Google the position retiring.
This function is currently stated in collecting Google services in your telephone settings such as “Google Play Instant”. Unfortunately, there are still not many examples available if you are curious about how instant apps were the Finnish publisher ILTA-Sanomat is one of the few that it still offers. Make sure that the settings are switched on for instant apps if you want a small dose of nostalgia.
