The Ubiquitous QR Code: What Role Does It Play in Digital Transformation?
Original article: https://cli.im/article/detail/2066
"Will you scan me, or should I scan you?"
For most Chinese internet users, this dialogue has become part of daily life. QR codes for payments, logins, food ordering, adding contacts, and product information... Those small squares composed of black and white pixels have long become the most familiar internet product for Chinese people.
During the "China National Pavilion Day" at the 2022 Dubai World Expo, Tencent dedicated a full 70 minutes to globally livestream the introduction of China's "Code-Based Lifestyle", showcasing QR code applications across daily life, manufacturing, cultural preservation, and public governance.
Yet when discussing digital transformation, QR codes rarely get mentioned. This capillary-like technology that permeates every corner of society seems to have become a "forgotten" object.
The "Second Homeland" of QR Codes
As early as 2018, industry insiders claimed that China had become the country with the most extensive QR code applications, accounting for over 90% of global usage.
While the exact data remains unverifiable, one fact is undeniable: China neither invented QR code technology nor was the first market to adopt it, yet it has become the country with the highest adoption rate and most diversified application scenarios.
Rewind to 1994. Denso Wave engineer Masahiro Hara spent two years developing the "QR Code" to solve the high error rates of barcodes in production management. The new code could be scanned faster and remained readable even with 30% damage. Hara named it "Quick Response Code" (QR Code).
To gain market advantage, Denso even opened its patents. However, QR codes only saw limited use in convenience stores during subsequent years, mockingly dubbed "Galápagos Technology" for its isolated market adoption.
In 2009, the U.S. attempted QR code integration through products like Google Maps. Unfortunately, requiring specific apps for scanning created cumbersome user experiences that dampened interest.
The real turning point came in China.
In May 2012, WeChat founder Allen Zhang posted: "The entry point for PC internet is the search box; for mobile internet, it's QR codes." Skeptics abounded, with critics dismissing QR codes as mere information entry tools.
Six years later, Tencent CEO Pony Ma explained their strategic bet: "We recognized QR codes' importance in 2012. Designing WeChat's 'Add Contacts' around scanning helped establish user association between QR codes and WeChat."
While Tencent's motives might have been strategic, they successfully cultivated China's "scanning culture." Coupled with tech giants' mobile internet anxieties, QR codes' value as entry points expanded:
- 2013: WeChat Pay launched with QR code payment flows
- 2014: Ride-hailing wars used QR codes for app downloads
- 2015: Shared bike competition saw QR codes on every bicycle
Around 2012, tools like CaoLiao QR Code and QuickMark emerged. While WeChat solved scanning entry, these tools enriched QR code functionality: converting text, URLs, files, and images into codes through simple generators, enabling color customization, backgrounds, and logos.
Though often overlooked in QR code narratives, these tools democratized QR code usage. A simple generator empowered non-technical users to create customized codes, transforming QR codes from corporate privileges to universal tools.
China became QR codes' true "second homeland," unleashing their potential through mass adoption. As observers note about "Chinese-style innovation": technological applications creatively integrate with massive populations.
New Solutions for Precision Management
Why did QR codes explode in China? Two consensus answers emerge:
Smartphone ubiquity: Denso's 1990s limitations stemmed from specialized scanners. Smartphone cameras eliminated hardware barriers, enabling mass adoption.
Weak digital infrastructure: China's underdeveloped financial system in the 2010s created opportunities for QR code payments. Consumption-driven digital transformation propelled QR codes into core infrastructure.
Yet these explanations only tell half the story. When Ma described QR codes as "mobile internet entry points," did their mission end with mobile internet's maturity? Even QR code inventor Hara predicted in 2014: "QR codes have at most 10 years left."
Hara wasn't shortsighted but failed to anticipate QR codes' evolving value. From simple online-offline connectors, QR codes now enable IoT-driven precision management through object-information linkages.
Industrial internet systems use QR codes and RFID as "digital IDs." Equipment QR tags allow scanning for production details, with data dashboards providing real-time factory insights.
Zhejiang Province's 2022 Global Migration to Two-Dimensional Code (GM2D) initiative replaces barcodes with QR codes across production, logistics, and retail, enabling traceability and integrated services.
Beyond macro implementations, empowered SMEs and individuals create novel applications:
Wang Jianding (pseudonym), a manufacturing supervision manager, converted training materials into videos hosted on CaoLiao QR Code. Employees scan codes to access content, while Wang tracks completion rates and collects feedback through backend analytics.
Equipment inspector Zhang Yang (pseudonym) created unique QR codes for machinery. Maintenance staff scan codes to submit inspection reports via linked forms, documenting issues with photos/audio/video directly through WeChat.
This exemplifies QR codes' true power: as democratic tools enabling grassroots innovation across industries. From basic connectors to precision management solutions, QR codes continue evolving.
The Silent Bridge Builder
Why do QR codes remain overlooked in digital transformation discussions? SenseTime CEO Xu Li's innovation framework offers insight:
- "Groundbreaking" stage (cutting-edge tech)
- "Ubiquitous" stage (mature adoption)
While AI, cloud computing, and blockchain dominate "groundbreaking" attention, 30-year-old QR codes have entered the "ubiquitous" phase—so ingrained that their presence goes unnoticed, like water or electricity.
QR codes' "invisible" nature belies their crucial role as digital bridges. Consider pandemic Health QR Codes:
- Citizens self-report information
- Platforms verify data
- Real-time updates and analysis
This simplified complex public health management into platform-user interactions.
QR codes now enable "one-code" solutions across retail, finance, transportation, and manufacturing. As China's MIIT 2022 "SME Digital Transformation Guide" notes, service providers should offer lightweight solutions to lower adoption barriers. QR codes perfectly address SMEs' resource constraints through affordability and simplicity.
China isn't alone in recognizing this value. QR management platform Beaconstac raised $25M in 2023, helping enterprises create branded codes. CEO Sharat Potharaju noted: "The pandemic accelerated physical-digital convergence through QR adoption."
Notably, Beaconstac resembles China-developed solutions like CaoLiao QR Code, which evolved from basic generators to full cloud services for equipment inspection, asset management, and paperless operations—all at <$150/year subscriptions compared to $10k+ enterprise systems.
Industry competition has positioned QR codes as affordable "digital alternatives." According to Aladdin Index, CaoLiao QR Code ranks alongside Tencent Docs and Baidu Netdisk in tool apps, reflecting China's QR code leadership in application depth and breadth.
Globally, QR codes represent China's rare first-mover advantage—boosting mature ecosystems and untapped potential. In digital transformation strategies, we mustn't underestimate this democratic technology's power.
Epilogue
The QR code story continues.
In five years, "Will you scan me?" conversations may fade as QR codes become even more indispensable—silently bridging technologies and accelerating China's industrial digitalization.
Note: Wang Jianding and Zhang Yang are pseudonyms.
Article republished from 36Kr: "The Ubiquitous QR Code: What Role Does It Play in Digital Transformation?"