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The Cal AI App Store Rejection Apple's recent crackdown on the MyFitnessPal-owned Cal AI food-logging app demonstrates that the tech giant is still enforcing its strict App Store rules around the use of external payments. The calorie-counting app, which was briefly removed from the App Store last week, had attempted to skirt Apple's in-app purchase guidelines and had also employed manipulative tactics, Apple told TechCrunch. Violations of App Store Guidelines Apple said that the app's brief removal was due to multiple violations of its rules, including bypassing Apple's in-app purchase flow, using deceptive billing design, and other manipulative tactics. The episode shows that Apple is still actively policing how developers implement web payments, even though the Epic ruling had loosened some earlier restrictions. The Data Behind the Decision Cal AI had bypassed Apple's in-app purchases by implementing an embedded in-app payment flow using a third-party service (in this case, Stripe) to unlock access to digital goods. The app had also been engaged in deceptive billing practices, in violation of Guideline 3.1.2c. Cal AI was further dinged for its use of "manipulative tactics," in violation of the Developer Code of Conduct's guideline 5.6. The Impact on Developers The episode serves as a warning to developers that Apple is still actively enforcing its App Store rules, even at the risk of losing out on its cut of the revenue of a viral app. Cal AI, which had grown to $50 million in ARR before being acquired by MyFitnessPal in March, had attempted to test the waters to see how actively Apple's app review team was enforcing its rules in the wake of the Apple-Epic court ruling. The Future of App Store Enforcement Apple's response should serve as a warning that the tech giant is still policing its App Store — even at the risk of losing out on its cut of the revenue of a viral app, which today sits in the No. 4 spot on the App Store's Health & Fitness charts.