Apple is making an adjustment to how developers build and run inside the App Store. The company has introduced a partner program that lowers fees for developers who tie their work more closely to Apple’s own tech stack. It is a clear sign of where Apple wants mini apps to go and how it expects developers to structure them.
Mini apps are lightweight web experiences that live inside larger host apps. They are already popular in China on platforms like WeChat and are now becoming common inside AI chatbots as small utilities. Apple began opening the door to them last year when it allowed developers to sell digital goods inside these experiences using its in-app purchase system. The new Mini Apps Partner Program expands that path but links the lower 15 percent fee directly to the use of Apple’s purchase history tools, its age verification API, and its own payment flow.
Developers get lower costs only if they adopt these systems, which fits the pattern of Apple’s previous programs for video apps, news apps, and smaller teams. Apple still reviews every app using human checks, and that same review now extends into each mini app experience that is submitted through the program. With growing pressure from EU regulation and recent court decisions in the US, Apple is adjusting its model without letting go of its control over quality and security.
Apple also updated its App Review Guidelines with new rules around AI data sharing. Any app that sends personal information to an external AI service must now clearly disclose that transfer and must ask the user for direct permission. Apple already required consent for data sharing, but the new wording calls out AI partners directly, leaving no room for apps to feed user details into external models without upfront clarity.
This shift arrives ahead of Apple’s own AI upgrades coming in 2026. Siri will gain the ability to perform actions across apps and will rely in part on Google’s Gemini. With that change on the way, Apple is drawing a firm line. If developers want to send user information to any outside intelligence system, users must know and must approve it.
Apple has also made smaller updates across the guidelines. Creator apps must set age based restrictions for sensitive content. HTML5 and JavaScript mini apps are now confirmed to be fully inside the scope of App Store review. Loan apps face tighter rules on APR and repayment timelines, and crypto exchanges remain on Apple’s list of heavily regulated categories.
