AI App Store

The rule book

What gets into the AI App Store on mlx.app and in MLX Node, what keeps it there, and what takes it out (1 Nov 2026). The catalogue lives in mts` enforces the mechanical parts.

Inclusion

  1. It's AI or directly serves AI work: apps, command-line tools, agents and harnesses, local runtimes, models, MCP servers, browser extensions, iPhone apps and workflows.
  2. It runs on a Mac or an iPhone: macOS 14 or later on Apple silicon, or a web app or iOS app usable from a Mac.
  3. It has a real, official source: the maker's own site, the Mac App Store or App Store, its GitHub or Hugging Face organisation, Homebrew, npm or PyPI. We link the official download only and never re-host a binary.
  4. Direct downloads are signed: a Mac app installed from a disk image must be Developer ID signed and notarized. MLX Node checks the signature against the team named in the listing before it installs anything.
  5. It's alive: a release or commit in the last 12 months, or an official listing in a store.
  6. Nothing harmful: no malware, piracy tools, jailbreak tools, scraping or spam tooling, or apps whose main purpose breaks usage policies. Uncensored ("abliterated") model builds are listed only with a clear label and are never featured.
  7. Listings are factual: what it does, price, platforms, licence and where your data goes (on your Mac, in the cloud, or both). Each fact links its source and the date it was checked.

Removal and flags

A listing is flagged or removed when the project has been dead for 12 months, the download is broken, there's a security advisory (we link it, show a banner and pause installs), or the maker asks.

Neutrality

There is no paid placement. If there ever is, it will be labelled "Sponsored" and will never change the MLX Score or the rankings. There are no affiliate links today; if there ever are, each one is disclosed and changes nothing in the ranking.

The MLX Score

The MLX Score (out of 5) combines real public signals only: App Store ratings as Apple reports them, GitHub stars and recent activity, Hugging Face downloads and likes, Homebrew install counts, npm and PyPI downloads. Ratings from MLX users who have the app installed will be added once MLX Node can confirm the install; none count today. Each signal is ranked against its category; a missing signal is left out, never guessed. The breakdown under every score shows each source, its value and the date it was read. We never show a rating count we didn't read, an "estimated users" figure, a review written by us or by an AI, or a review someone was paid for. The method is on the MLX Score page of the store.

Personalisation

What you have installed, what you're interested in and what fits your Mac are worked out on your Mac by MLX Node and never leave it. MLX Node checks only the listings' own bundle ids and fixed command paths: no disk scan, no list of your apps.

Who decides

An agent proposes new listings and changes from public sources (GitHub, Hugging Face, the App Store, Hacker News and the MLX community). Nothing is published until a person approves it in Admin → Store.