Apple has quietly stopped some AI vibe coding apps from shipping updates on the Apple App Store, according to a report from The Information. The affected apps include Replit and Vibecode, and Apple is said to be requiring changes before it will approve new versions.
These AI vibe coding tools are built to let people create apps or websites with natural-language prompts, even if they have little or no traditional programming experience. That ease of use has helped them spread quickly among both developers and non-technical users.
Apple told The Information that some of the features in question break a long-standing App Store rule that prohibits apps from executing code that changes their own functionality or the functionality of other apps. Developers also said some of these tools can be used to build software for Apple devices, which may be contributing to a recent increase in App Store submissions and longer review times for some apps.
An Apple spokesperson said the policy is not aimed specifically at AI vibe coding apps. Even so, people familiar with the matter said Apple moved closer to approving updates for Replit and Vibecode after the developers agreed to change how app previews are generated, or to remove features tied to building software for Apple platforms.
When platforms like Replit generate apps, they often show the result inside the main app through an embedded web view. Apple reportedly objected to that approach. If the generated app opens in an external browser instead of an in-app web view, approval is expected to be more likely.
For Vibecode, people familiar with the review process said Apple indicated the update would likely pass if the app removed features specifically designed to generate software for Apple devices.
The report argues that Apple’s intervention could weaken both the usability and the growth of this category. Since its last update in January, Replit’s iPhone app has reportedly slipped from first to third place in Apple’s free developer tools ranking, and the company is said to believe part of that drop is tied to its inability to ship updates.
These tools could pose a broader challenge to Apple because they let users build apps that run outside the App Store ecosystem, while also competing with Xcode in some scenarios. Some developers believe Apple has an incentive to steer creators back toward its own tools and make it harder to shift toward other platforms.
