Apple has updated its App Store policies to restrict minors’ access to online dating apps and AI companions that involve “sexual or romantic content,” the company told developers on Monday.
The move is part of broader steps Apple has taken to better protect minors, including a global rollout of its age assurance technology and expanded parental controls and child safety features.
What changes
Under the new policy, any app offering dating or romantic relationship features must carry an 18+ age rating. Starting November 16, developers are required to provide new content descriptors so that an app’s age rating accurately reflects its features.
Potential impact on AI companion apps
The requirement could have significant implications for AI companion applications or multi-feature apps where romantic functionality is one component. Services often aimed at younger users, such as Character.AI and Replika, allow people to create AI companions — including friends, lovers, boyfriends and girlfriends, and other fantasy characters. According to the announcement, as of last summer the top AI companion apps across the Apple App Store and Google Play had been downloaded 220 million times globally.
xAI also launched 3D animated AI companions last year that allowed users to unlock NSFW capabilities, an example that underscores why age-based classification is relevant for these products.
Location sharing and privacy
In addition to dating and relationship disclosures, apps must indicate if they share a user’s real-world location with another person or group as part of their functionality. Such location-sharing raises clear privacy concerns, particularly when users are not aware their location is being shared.
Brazil exception
Apple noted a Brazil-specific provision: apps that provide location-sharing features for families can request an official rating from the country’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security (MJSP/Ministério da Justiça e Segurança Pública) instead of being assigned an A16 rating automatically, as local law would otherwise require.
Overall, the new App Store rules impose stricter age limits and greater transparency for apps offering romantic content or location-sharing — changes that will especially affect AI-based companion apps and aim to enhance protections for younger users.
