Thanks to the new possibilities offered by AI coding tools, the App Store is experiencing a resurgence in new app submissions. Although Apple continues to face some issues regarding how these apps are created and behave, this is the situation. Here are the details.

Amidst the Increase in App Submissions, Apple Turns to AI to Scale App Store Reviews

The Information reports that new app submissions to the App Store have decreased by 46% between 2016 and 2024, but the "number of new apps that suddenly exploded worldwide in the App Store last year" has increased by 30%, reaching nearly 600,000 compared to 2024.

A report based on Sensor Tower data suggests that the main contributors to the increase in new apps are vibe coding tools like Anthropic’s Claude Code and OpenAI’s Codex.

The Information notes, "It is difficult to determine how many of these new apps were created by developers using AI, but it is likely that many are based on AI tools:"

AI coding tools allow those without programming knowledge to produce functional applications using written commands, while also enabling those with programming skills to generate much more code than they could manually.

“We have seen explosive growth in new apps over the past year,” says Abraham Yousef, a senior insights analyst at Sensor Tower. “This aligns with the broader release of agency coding tools that eliminate the previous challenges of app creation.”

In an interview with The Information, Apple stated that this wave reflects the importance of the App Store.

Interestingly, Apple is also pushing back against some iOS-based vibe coding apps that violate the company's App Review Guidelines and Developer Program License.

In recent weeks, Apple has either pulled or blocked updates for apps like Anything and Replit, forcing developers to change how their tools generate and execute code.

In short, some of these apps produce interpreted code that can change their primary purposes; this is not accepted by Apple.

The report continues, The Information notes that the increase in new apps could create extra pressure on Apple’s App Review teams; however, the company denies this claim:

As a likely result of the significant increase in the number of apps that Apple’s review team now has to review, app developers have complained about longer review times. Last month, Elon Musk shared on social media site X, “iOS App Review delays are becoming ridiculous.”

An Apple spokesperson denied claims that review times have increased. Apple stated that the app review team processes 90% of submissions within 48 hours. In the last 12 weeks, the team processed more than 200,000 app submissions per week, with an average review time of 1.5 days. The spokesperson also noted that each app submission needs to be reviewed by a human, but the company is increasingly using AI tools in the process.

9to5Mac’s View

It has been interesting to see more people show interest in developing their own apps over the past few months.

Despite the grumpy reactions from commentators against everything related to AI, vibe coding tools offer real value and open up new possibilities for those looking to create small projects, whether as a hobby or something others might find useful.

Of course, these tools are far from having the capacity to support someone wanting to start an entirely new business. Still, as far as I can see (and I follow this market very closely), this expectation does not reflect how most people are using vibe coding tools today.

On Apple’s side, they recently updated Xcode to support coding models and agents. Unfortunately, this approach still targets more technical users; tools like Anything further abstract the coding process, and this trend clearly resonates with a growing segment of users.

With WWDC26 around the corner and vibe coding gaining momentum, it will be interesting to see whether Apple updates App Store rules to reflect new development patterns; especially for applications that support user-centric creativity based on AI-generated, interpreted code.

In conclusion, this is exactly what Apple has always said the App Store is.

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