GoKawiilFollowing a dispute that led to two removals from the App Store, the developers behind the vibe coding platform Anything are publicly accusing Apple of shutting out a new generation of app creators through outdated app review guidelines. Here are the details.
Vibe coding apps challenge long-standing App Store rules
A few weeks ago, The Information reported that Apple had pulled the vibe coding app “Anything” from the App Store.
Apple claimed the Anything app violated “longstanding App Store rules that say an app can’t run code that changes the way it or other apps function.”
The rules in question were:
Section 2.5.2 of the App Review Guidelines : “Apps should be self-contained in their bundles, and may not read or write data outside the designated container area, nor may they download, install, or execute code which introduces or changes features or functionality of the app, including other apps.”
: “Apps should be self-contained in their bundles, and may not read or write data outside the designated container area, nor may they download, install, or execute code which introduces or changes features or functionality of the app, including other apps.” Section 3.3.1(B) of the Developer Program License: “Interpreted code may be downloaded to an Application but only so long as such code: (a) does not change the primary purpose of the Application by providing features or functionality that are inconsistent with the intended and advertised purpose of the Application.”
That is partly how vibe coding apps work. They generally let users send text prompts that AI models turn into code, before generating a working version of the app.
In Anything’s case, users can preview the app on their own devices and choose whether they want to submit it for approval on the App Store, provided they have a developer account.
Apple, however, has been taking issue with Anything’s app development and preview workflows, which is why the company has removed it from the App Store. Twice.
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