At 10 p.m. Monday, I sent Apple my third review build
As an indie developer, I’ve also hit that moment when something runs fine locally but gets stuck before release. That night, I stared at the email asking for “an explanation of AI use” and realized the problem wasn’t one missing document. It was that the feature boundaries, customer use cases, and review evidence had never been clearly explained.
This isn’t a tool recommendation; the review rules are getting tougher
This is about AI plugin developers: Apple’s App Review is treating AI use cases as higher-risk areas. The issue isn’t that Apple suddenly prohibits AI. Reviewers are paying closer attention to how data is used, how content is generated, whether features exceed the stated purpose, and whether developers can explain the real-world use case.
I know a friend, Lin Yue, who builds an audio practice app. She maintains the product from a café in Hangzhou, where users can generate practice rhythms with AI. Before submitting, she added “generated content is not used for training” and “sensitive recordings are not collected” to the app description, then saved test screenshots. This doesn’t guarantee approval, but it can reduce repeated review questions.
What it costs to copy this approach today, and the first step
The extra cost is roughly ¥0 and 2–4 hours spent organizing materials. The technical barrier is low: you need to explain the feature flow and save screenshots, not write code. The first step is to open App Store Connect in Apple’s developer dashboard, find “Version Information” or the review-materials section, and document the AI feature’s inputs, outputs, data storage, and human-review process. Then check that the screenshots match the description. I made this mistake myself: I wrote only “AI-enhanced” without explaining where user data went, and Apple asked for additional materials.
How I’d sequence the work before submission
If I were starting a small team, I’d shrink the AI feature’s scope and keep one clear, verifiable core flow. There’s no need to connect multiple models right away. It’s also fine to wait until the product logic is stable, then add the full explanation. If I already have 1–2 customers, I’d turn their common questions into review notes and attach screenshots from tests on real devices. If I’m scaling, I’d maintain a checklist and rollback record for every version so each submission is traceable. Not every product needs this setup, and the rules will keep changing. The key is not to leave review until the last day.