Apple pulled 'Anything'

Apple removed Anything from the iPhone App Store after a weeks-long dispute over how the app lets people generate and preview software on their own devices. (9to5mac.com) Anything co-founder Dhruv Amin told TechCrunch Apple first removed the app on March 26, briefly restored it on April 3, and then pulled it again days later. He said the company had been blocking updates since December 2025. (techcrunch.com) “Vibe coding” means describing an app in plain language and letting artificial intelligence turn that prompt into working code. Anything’s pitch was that users could build iPhone apps, preview them on an iPhone, export the code, and in some cases submit them to Apple with one tap. (techcrunch.com) Apple’s objection centers on App Store Review Guideline 2.5.2, which says apps must be self-contained and may not download, install, or execute code that adds or changes features. Apple also says its review process is meant to keep malware and unsafe software out of the App Store. (developer.apple.com) That puts tools like Anything in a narrow lane on iPhone. Apple appears willing to allow app-building tools in principle, but not workflows that let an approved app change its behavior by pulling in runnable code after review. (9to5mac.com) Apple told Anything, according to a screenshot of an email the startup shared, that the app marketed itself as an iPhone app builder with “1-tap App Store submissions, code export, and full source code editing.” Amin said Apple also raised the risk that someone could build malicious software, sideload it, and then imply it had passed App Store review. (techcrunch.com) Anything says it tried to satisfy Apple with four technical rewrites, including a change that would have moved app previews from inside the iPhone app to a web browser. 9to5Mac reported Apple rejected that update and removed the app entirely. (9to5mac.com) The fight is not limited to one startup. TechCrunch reported Apple has also paused updates for Replit and Vibecode, while The Information, cited by several outlets, reported a recent jump in App Store submissions tied to artificial-intelligence coding tools. (techcrunch.com) Anything is now shifting its product around Apple’s rules. The company has launched an iMessage-based builder, said it plans a desktop companion app for mobile development, and said it may put more focus on Google’s Android operating system. (techcrunch.com)