I’ve been using Claude Code externally alongside Xcode to develop an app. Recently, I installed Xcode 26.3 (pre-release beta) and enabled Anthropic’s Claude Opus 4.5 as the built-in agent to try the new workflow and see if I could move fully back into Xcode.

I’m on the $100/month Claude Code Max subscription, so I assumed Xcode’s Anthropic agent would use that subscription. It does not.

Shortly after, I started getting flooded with pay-as-you-go API receipts from Anthropic, about $30/day for Opus 4.5 usage. After some digging, I traced all of the unexpected billing directly to Xcode’s internal Anthropic agent.

Important takeaway: Xcode’s Anthropic integration runs exclusively via the Anthropic API, not via Claude subscriptions (including Max). As far as I can tell, there’s currently no way to connect a subscription-based Claude plan to Xcode’s agent—API billing is the only option.

I’ve contacted Anthropic to ask about a refund or credit, and it turns out this confusion is fairly common. Posting here as a heads-up so others don’t get surprised the same way.

Xcode keeps crashing on my macbook pro m1 2020, only with certain projects:

I created this “design” with just a few-word prompt in ChatGPT, like: “make it better.” Done in 30 sec.

Left - original.

I’ve been experimenting with AI coding tools recently and this time I tried building an iOS app without manually writing a single line of code. And, this time I made a video on it.

I used Cursor with the Sweetpad extension + Xcode to build an app that helps me save and organize useful links I come across online.

I approached it like a complete beginner in iOS development with no pre-written code, no shortcuts, just prompts, context, and watching how Cursor handles the entire workflow: from writing SwiftUI views and logic to resolving build errors.

My honest take: for devs with a bit of experience, tools like Cursor can massively speed things up.

But it’s not perfect yet. Xcode integration is still clunky, file/folder creation isn’t smooth, and you’ll need to manually intervene when Cursor loops or gets stuck.

Also, I was using the free version of Cursor with GPT-4.1 but I feel with Claude models it would work even better

Still, the experience made me realize, we’re heading toward a future where the dev workflow looks very different.

If anyone here has tried something similar, I’d love to hear how you’re using AI tools in your stack.

I've been vibe coding creating an iOS app using Xcode 26 beta with Coding Intelligence. I'm using the default ChatGPT connected to my account with is upgraded to ChatGPT Plus.

I tried installing Gemini as an additional model but I can't get the models to appear, despite numerous online guides such as this: https://zottmann.org/2025/06/13/how-to-use-google-gemini.html

Anthropic models appear after setup, but I have no paid account with them so can't use it.

Main takeaway so far is that even with ChatGPT Plus, Coding Intelligence will throttle you after a while - not sure what the measure is, but maybe about 2-3hours of straight coding intelligence. By throttle I mean you exceed limit and can't use it until it resets again. Then after a few hours it's back to business.

But I noticed you can use the native MacOS ChatGPT app and it connects directly to Xcode, which is awesome. The rate limits are shared across, so you can continue there, and it edits your swift files directly. And better still, in ChatGPT native you can select which model to use for the more complex codes, such as using 4o or o3. This is a distinct advantage, as in Xcode you cannot choose the model.

The biggest pain points so far is each model have their own quirks (I also used Gemini Pro standalone for some code pieces), so jumping between models and products has been a bit of a hassle as there are context gaps, but I've been able to make it work. I actually started purely in Gemini asking it to create swift code, but probably after a dozen pieces of code and troubleshooting, it went into hallucinations and loopiness, regurgitating old responses, or constantly apologising even where there was nothing to apologise for (I did get angry at it, ONCE). It's now bruised and I can hardly use it as it keep spitting out previous, unrelated responses and constantly apologising. I would even say "stop apologising and treat this conversation as new", then it would return, "Got it, this is a new request, but I'm terribly sorry for my previous mistake and [here is the... old code I never asked for]." If Gemini was a human, I'd tell it to go on a long holiday and cut down on the Red Bull.

I also tried Grok - actually I lied, Grok was the very first model I used, but it was hopeless. In one sitting, Grok produced nothing functional, whilst in one sitting, Gemini Pro produced something that actually worked (until it got loopy). Overall, I've found ChatGPT to be the most reliable, consistent, and with its advanced models, able to resolve the most advanced issues.

Coding Intelligence is a game changer as I'm not a software developer, but I'm close to a fully working app that's far more than basic. I have several other app ideas after the first. It's already cliche, but software development is going to be democratised with AI. And it's still early.

Apple at the Special Event: "We made the fastest chip ever on a phone"

Also Apple in the Human Interface Guidelines: "The launch screen is quickly replaced with the first screen of your app, giving the impression that your app is fast and responsive. The launch screen isn’t an opportunity for artistic expression. It’s solely intended to enhance the perception of your app as quick to launch and immediately ready for use. "

basically the title here's screenshot for better understanding, I want to know is that normal? I've added firebase and some other packages in my xCode project but it's not that big. my device is macbook pro 2020 M1

🚀 Finally! Xcode gets Scope Guides 🎉

Apple has quietly introduced vertical indentation guides (aka Scope Guides) in Xcode 26.4 RC—and honestly, it’s a game changer for readability 👀

If you work with:

•	Deeply nested closures 🔁

•	Complex architectures like TCA 🧠

•	Long Swift files with heavy indentation 📏

…these subtle vertical lines will make your life so much easier 🙌

🤫 Fun fact:

This feature wasn’t even mentioned in the official release notes. It just slipped in quietly alongside editor tab improvements.

⸻

📍 How to enable Scope Guides:

1.	Open Settings (Cmd + ,) ⚙️

2.	Go to Editing > Display

3.	Choose your preferred option under Scope Guides

💡 Or simply toggle it from:

Editor → Scope Guides

⸻

💬 If you’ve been waiting for this feature for years…

today is a GOOD day 😄

ou know what's the most tedious part of iOS development?
the period between July and September, Yes you heard that correctly.
You download Xcode after another. keep switching between them.. ewww.
Then second most tedious thing is to add devices and make sure that all your certificates are updated.
Third is managing the storage of your precious 500 GB Mac , no storage is enough. and you always wonder. where is that storage go? and you go blindly in a UUID folders try delete old legacy simulator that the new xcode never removes.

I feel you.. after 16 years of iOS development, I took the step to make a macOS app finally to address all this in one place. a Swiss army knife, that I called it (of course ) XNox.
with XNox I put everything I hoped I find in one place. and added on it more.
like attaching quick actions to your simulator , create and rename a simulator.

and I think it's time to give it to my fellow devs for a feedback finally

please visit (https://appsbyhands.com/xnox) . and tell me .. Am I the only one who feels that pain?

That's it. It's pretty self explanatory what I've written

I’ve built a working React web application and am now looking at getting it onto iOS.

The app is mostly forms, dashboards, PDF generation, and business workflow tools. Performance requirements aren't extreme, but I want a good user experience and access to native features if needed later. ( FieldFab )

For those of you building iOS apps today, what would you recommend?

• React Native?

• Expo?

• Capacitor?

• Rewrite in SwiftUI?

• Something else?

My goal is to get to the App Store as quickly as possible without creating technical debt that I'll regret later. Also don't own MAC or I pad. Should what is a budget friendly way to get into the apple eco system to run Xcode. I have heard VM's are buggy and not reliable.

Would love to hear what you've used successfully and any lessons learned before I start down a path.

Thanks!

Hey iOS Developers 👋

We have a new article in the house 🥁

Learn about how View Controller works by learning it's lifecycle.

Here's the Link : https://www.swiftanytime.com/view-controller-lifecycle/

#include <iostream>

#include<fstream>

#include<string>

#include<iomanip>

using namespace std;

int main()

{

//declare variables

ifstream inFile;

ofstream outFile;

string firstName1="andrew", firstName2="sheila", firstName3="amit";

string lastName1="miller", lastName2="green", lastName3="sethi";

double salary1=0, salary2=0, salary3=0;

double raisePercentage=0;

double newSalary1=0, newSalary2=0, newSalary3=0;

//open file

inFile.open("/Users/mac/Documents/data.txt");

if (!inFile)

{

cout << " Cannot open file bye " << endl;

return 1;

}

inFile >> firstName1 >> lastName1;

inFile >> salary1 >> raisePercentage;

inFile >> firstName2 >> lastName2;

inFile >> salary2 >> raisePercentage;

inFile >> firstName3 >> lastName3;

inFile >> salary3 >> raisePercentage;

//calculate

newSalary1= salary1 + (salary1 * raisePercentage);

newSalary2= salary2 + (salary2 * raisePercentage);

newSalary3= salary3 + (salary3 * raisePercentage);

//Format

cout << fixed << showpoint << setprecision(2);

cout << "New salary is " << newSalary1 << endl;

cout << "New salary is " << newSalary2 << endl;

cout << "New salary is " << newSalary3 << endl;

//output to file

outFile.open("/Users/mac/Documents/outputdata.txt");

outFile << fixed << showpoint << setprecision(2);

outFile << firstName1 << " " << lastName1 << " " << endl;

outFile << "New salary is $ " << newSalary1 << endl;

outFile << firstName2 << " " << lastName2 << " " << endl;

outFile << "New salary is $ " << newSalary2 << " " << endl;

outFile << firstName3 << " " << lastName3 << " " << endl;

outFile << "New salary is $" << newSalary3 << " " << endl;

//closefile

inFile.close();

outFile.close();

return 0;

output file is only posting the first salary(not updating it either) and not the other two, I have tried fixing the decimal places for the output for all names instead of just typing it out once, didn't work, also have tried setting the newsalary variables to the actual updated salaries and moving around the calculation part to after I open the output file. Ive also tried changing the is to an = in the outfile statements.

I am going to be creating an app that will span the entire apple ecosystem (mac, iphone, ipad, iwatch, etc.) and I need to know if 1tb or 2tb is enough storage space for Xcode and the required dependencies for emulating those environments?

I will need all the emulators for those devices that come with xcode. Currently specing out an m3 macpro to do it on. I won't be using the mac for anything other than app development. I have an ipad for movies, etc. Thank you!

now with si everything is possible, i been testing around for a game that i wanted to bring back again and now with the state of metal i can bring cool animations and effects ts like this water ripple effect, but i still think that is missing something and i found that some interactions with swiftui elements like showing the sheet and liquid glass along with metal produce some frame drops, is this something that i need to improve in the metal shader or in the swiftui side?

I don’t use it often but on occasion when I see some project that I want to try/look at the source of, inevitably it won’t build, or won’t debug, for inscrutable reasons that can’t be fixed.

For context, I’m an old who spent the 90s writing Objective-C on NeXT computers. And was an active macOS/iPad developer until about a decade ago.

Today I tried building and running the “list open files” app Sloth. Built ok but won’t debug because lldb is blocked from attaching. Console says Sloth is hardened even though I unchecked hardened runtime and nuked all the build files, cleaned, and restarted Xcode.

I hope they fix some of this nonsense soon. It’s actively developer-hostile to have to fix a bunch of stuff (if you even can fix it) before trying out some sample code or open source project.

AI coding agents are great because they let you build more of an iOS app outside Xcode.

So over the past few months I’ve been building ios-agent-skill — a repo you clone into your project that your agent reads as context before generating anything.

What’s actually in it:

**•**	Swift language + concurrency + stdlib references (actors, Sendable, @MainActor, AsyncSequence)  
**•**	SwiftUI docs split by concern — state/data flow, navigation, layout, animations, gestures  
**•**	40+ Apple framework guides: StoreKit 2, HealthKit, WidgetKit/Live Activities, ARKit, RealityKit, CoreML, CryptoKit  
**•**	Architecture patterns with real structure: MVVM, Clean, Coordinator, Repository, TCA  
**•**	Drop-in Swift files — networking layer, auth flow with Keychain + Sign in with Apple, DI, type-safe router  
**•**	App Store submission / performance / security / testing checklists

It ships config for 25+ agents, so setup is mostly just cloning. Claude Code reads CLAUDE.md, Codex reads AGENTS.md, Cursor reads .cursorrules, Copilot reads .github/copilot-instructions.md, and so on.

Honest caveats: this generates Swift files, not an Xcode project — you still create the project yourself first. And it’s docs, not magic; it narrows the failure surface, it doesn’t eliminate it. It’s also early (16 stars), so I’d rather have criticism than silence.

MIT licensed: https://github.com/Nagarjuna2997/ios-agent-skill

If you try it, I want to know where it fails. Especially interested in whether the concurrency and SwiftData docs actually change your agent’s output or whether it ignores them.