Android 15 and Wear OS 5 to Introduce Convenient Passkey Updates

TL;DR: Android 15 and Wear OS 5 to introduce convenient passkey updates, including single-tap sign-in, Autofill in Gboard, “Restore” passkey feature, and passkey support for Wear OS 5.

While AI dominated the Google I/O keynote this year, several new feature updates were tucked away in the various developer sessions. According to 9to5Google, Android 15 and Wear OS 5 are set to receive some handy passkey updates.

Single-Tap Sign-In Process for Android 15

In its “Passkeys and identity best practices” dev session, Google revealed that Android 15 will introduce a single-tap sign-in process. Instead of having two separate screens – one for selecting an account and another for biometric prompts – Google will combine them into a single screen.

This means you’ll be able to log in to an account using your face, finger, or any other screen unlocking method with just a single tap. Developers will automatically support this feature in new versions of Credential Manager on Android 15 or higher.

Autofill to Display Credential Manager Results in Gboard

Another update is that Autofill will display Credential Manager results in Gboard, including:

• Passwords
• Passkeys
• Sign in with Google

Easier App Log-In with “Restore” Passkey Feature

Logging back into your apps when you get a new device will become easier, thanks to a new “Restore” passkey feature for phones and tablets. An app can save a restore key to Credential Manager, which is stored locally on the device and can be automatically transferred to the new device if cloud backups are enabled.

No more logging into each app individually.

Passkeys Coming to Wear OS 5

Passkeys are also making their way to Wear OS 5 in a quarterly platform release. You’ll be able to use passkeys, passwords, or Sign in with Google directly from your wrist. Google mentions that this capability will work with third-party password managers, such as Dashlane.

The Apple Watch already offers some of these authentication features, so it’s good to see Google leveling the playing field for Android smartwatch users.