Podcast Rewind: Automation Wishes, RG Rotate Impressions, Lessons from Shipping Apps, and Heading to Apple Park

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts:

AppStories

This week, Federico and John share their WWDC automation wishes.

On AppStories+, they share more details on their research setups for the summer.

NPC: Next Portable Console

This week, we update listeners on the SN Operator and consider what the Steam Deck price hike means for the handheld gaming industry before sharing our first impressions of Anbernic’s RG Rotate.

On NPC XL, Brendon takes the wraps off of overworld.vg, a new game news aggregation site that he built and Federico and John have been testing.

Comfort Zone

Niléane has a cool new mouse, Matt wants to reflect on what they’ve learned shipping apps to the public, and they both reflect on joining cults.

On Cozy Zone, the gang has to guess and then tier list Google’s dead apps.

MacStories Unwind

This week, Federico and John talk about what makes WWDC special, share some memorable moments from past years, and think about how to spend their in-flight downtime.

Read more

Decoding “Developer” in a Changing App Landscape→

Boy, have things changed. A lot. When I started writing at MacStories over a decade ago, there was a long list of beloved native Mac apps. It was a stable group of excellent apps, but there weren’t many new ones coming on the scene. Instead, developers were focused on iOS and iPadOS. Then, as recently as a couple of years ago, it seemed as though cross-platform apps based on web technologies were destined to overtake native Mac apps.

Web apps are still a big part of the Mac scene, but something fundamental has shifted, as Jason Snell noted yesterday on Six Colors:

These days, I’m getting emails pitching me for an endless stream of new Mac apps. It’s quite remarkable because there was a period five or ten years ago when it seemed like all app development on Apple’s platforms was focused on iOS. Even more interesting, these are all indie Mac apps that seem to be built using native Mac frameworks, not the product of big corporations that are just rolling their cross-platform development system out everywhere. These apps seem to have a point of view and are focused on the Mac.

Of course, it’s happening because of AI.

He’s right. We’ve seen the same thing at MacStories. I can barely keep up with my inbox. It’s full of all kinds of app pitches, but the number of brand new Mac apps in particular is off the charts compared to anytime in the past decade.

You might assume that these apps are all low-quality slop. But here’s the thing. They really aren’t. Okay, some are, but we’ve always been pitched on poor-quality apps. What’s telling is that the signal-to-noise ratio hasn’t changed noticeably.

Instead, what I’m seeing is a new cohort of people with innovative ideas bringing them to life with the help of agents. And while it’s still true that some level of technical know-how and product sense is required to build an app, typing the code by hand is no longer a prerequisite, which eliminates a lot of the friction of starting an app. Just look at the examples Jason cites: Federico’s Shortcuts Playground, Lex Friedman’s recent GIF utility called Gnome, and his own Mac utility, Double Ender, for syncing up podcast audio. The three of them collectively have decades of experience with apps and Apple technologies, which is still necessary to make a good app.

That’s because what agents haven’t changed is the rest of the process, which is hard to put a name to, but also leaves space for a lot of human creativity. Having used Claude Code to build a bunch of native and web apps myself, I couldn’t agree more with Jason that:

Whatever you call it, whether it’s being a producer or product manager or something else that isn’t a programmer, creating good software in the AI era still requires the power of a human brain: being creative, solving problems, and making decisions. Some people will be better at it than others. It’s a skill, and a bit of an art. I’m excited that modern coding tools have given people with vision and desire the ability to make software.

These tools allow more people to experience the creative process of building an app, which I love. I’m no more sure of what to call someone who builds apps this way than Jason is, but I do know that the app landscape is fundamentally changing in ways that were hard to imagine even six months ago. Boy, have things changed.

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Coming Soon: What’s Next on Apple TV and Apple Arcade in June 2026

It’s a new month, Apple has a slate of new and returning TV shows, new Arcade games are on the way, and Formula 1 is heading to Europe, which means it’s time for a roundup of everything coming to Apple TV and Apple Arcade in June 2026.

Let’s dive in.

Apple Arcade

Apple Arcade is debuting four new games tomorrow:

Coffee Inc 2+ (June 4)

Coffee Inc 2+ is a business simulation game where you build and manage your own coffee shop. You set the pricing, order supplies, handle marketing and advertising, and more with the goal of growing from one shop to a chain of stores.

Mini Football Legends (June 4)

Mini Football Legends is an arcade-style soccer game where your job is to build, train, and manage your team. The game is a great fit with the FIFA World Cup coming to the U.S. this month.

My Talking Tom 2+ and FreeCell Solitaire: Card Game+ (June 4)

Rounding out the month are two more App Store favorites adapted for Arcade. My Talking Tom 2+ is the virtual pet sequel starring Tom, a cartoon cat, that features mini-games and a care-and-feeding loop that has made the series a hit. FreeCell Solitaire: Card Game+ is coming to Arcade, too, featuring the classic single-player card game.

Apple TV Shows and Movies

Cape Fear (June 5)

The show I’m looking forward to most this month is Cape Fear, a ten-episode psychological horror thriller inspired by the 1991 Martin Scorsese movie. The series tells the story of Max Cady, a convicted murderer recently released from prison, who begins infiltrating the lives of the attorneys who put him there. The series is showrun and executive produced by Nick Antosca, with Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg among its executive producers.

Add to Your Calendar:

Sugar, Season Two (June 19)

Colin Farrell returns as Los Angeles private detective John Sugar for a second season. The new season sees Sugar taking on a new case of an up-and-coming local boxer searching for his older brother, while also continuing the search for his own missing sister.

Add to Your Calendar:

Camp Snoopy, Season 2 (June 26)

Snoopy and pals return for a second season in Camp Snoopy. The new season follows the group as they set out to earn their badges while running into Charlie Brown and friends, who are spending the summer at Camp Spring Lake.

Live Sports Events

Source: [Formula 1](https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/what-tyres-will-the-teams-and-drivers-have-for-the-2026-monaco-grand-prix.6RNlF5Skp9niWsEz6urQMr).

Source: Formula 1.

June is a busy month for sports on Apple TV. Formula 1 begins its European stretch with three Grand Prix weekends, and Friday Night Baseball continues every Friday.

Formula 1: Monaco Grand Prix (June 7)

Round 6 of the 2026 Formula 1 season takes place on the Circuit de Monaco. The full race weekend, including practice, qualifying, and the Grand Prix, streams on Apple TV.

Add to Your Calendar:

Formula 1: Barcelona-Catalunya Race (June 14)

A week later, F1’s Round 7 heads to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

Add to Your Calendar:

Formula 1: Austrian Grand Prix (June 28)

Finally, Round 8 brings the F1 season to the Austrian Grand Prix.

Add to Your Calendar:

Friday Night Baseball

Friday Night Baseball continues its fifth season on Apple TV with a doubleheader every Friday in June:

  • June 5
    • Cleveland Guardians at Texas Rangers (8:15 PM Eastern)
    • Kansas City Royals at Minnesota Twins (8:15 PM Eastern)
  • June 12
    • Arizona Diamondbacks at Cincinnati Reds (7:15 PM Eastern)
    • Atlanta Braves at New York Mets (7:15 PM Eastern)
  • June 19
    • St. Louis Cardinals at Kansas City Royals (8:15 PM Eastern)
    • Minnesota Twins at Arizona Diamondbacks (9:45 PM Eastern)
  • June 26
    • Chicago Cubs at Milwaukee Brewers (7:45 PM Eastern)
    • Los Angeles Dodgers at San Diego Padres (9:45 PM Eastern)

That’s it for June. If you’re a Club MacStories Plus or Premier member, drop by the TV and Movies channel in Discord to chat about what you’re looking forward to from Apple TV this month, and be sure to listen to MacStories Unwind, where Federico and I cover some of these shows, along with our other media recommendations, every week.

RemCTL 1.0.5, Now with Support for All-Day Reminders and Task Assignments→

RemCTL 1.0.5 with support for task assignments and all-day reminders.

RemCTL 1.0.5 with support for task assignments and all-day reminders.

I wanted to share a quick update to RemCTL, my CLI for Reminders that I released last week, which brings almost every Reminders feature to your agent or terminal of choice.

As it turns out, I forgot to support two more Reminders-exclusive (i.e. not available to third-party clients) functionalities in the initial version: all-day reminders and the ability to assign a reminder to another person in a shared list. The former is the feature that lets you enter a task with a due date such as “Tuesday” but without a due time;. those tasks can now be properly read and written by RemCTL.

Additionally, while RemCTL cannot share lists with iCloud (it requires a private Apple entitlement – same reason why the CLI cannot share a template via iCloud), it can now read and create task assignments from an already-shared Reminders list. In a nice touch, you can even lookup assignees by name, email address, or phone number.

You can find a detailed changelog of the latest release here. As always, the best way to update the CLI is to simply ask your agent to pull the latest version and update its installed skill to match the most recent version from the repo.

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2026 Apple Design Awards Winners Announced

With WWDC right around the corner, Apple has revealed the winners of the annual Apple Design Awards. The Awards are given to an app and game from a pool of 36 finalists in the following categories:

  • Delight and Fun
  • Inclusivity
  • Innovation
  • Interaction
  • Social Impact
  • Visuals and Graphics

The pool of finalists was especially strong this year, but just one app and game is chosen for each category, and here’s what Apple picked:

Delight and Fun

Is This Seat Taken?

Is This Seat Taken?

App: grug
Developer: Ocho (Netherlands)

grug is a playful way to discover and embrace daily wisdom. The affirmation app provides a delightful way to read daily neolithic grunts. With just a simple idea, each prompt is thoughtfully delivered to offer users a small but meaningful moment of reflection.

Game: Is This Seat Taken?
Developer: Poti Poti Studio (Spain)

Is This Seat Taken? is a fun way to experience and solve tricky logic puzzles. The cartoon-style game provides entertaining scenarios, helping players navigate the quirkiness of public transit. Playful interactive elements within the game create a sense of charm to support users in enjoying an unhurried ride, one seat at a time.

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Designed in California: An Apple History Podcast from Myke Hurley and Jason Snell→

Apple has one of the richest and most interesting histories in Silicon Valley. It’s the story of a startup, a company that nearly failed, and a remarkable comeback all rolled into one that’s punctuated by some of the most beloved products in tech history, along with some duds.

Today, Myke Hurley and Jason Snell launched a Kickstarter campaign aimed at funding a podcast called Designed in California that will tell the history of Apple, drawing on their own knowledge of the company and research. Myke and Jason have promised backers at least 30 episodes in the show’s first year on topics ranging from Apple’s founding, its near-death experience in the 90s, as well as more recent events during the Tim Cook era.

As I publish this, Designed in California has already met its $40,000 campaign goal, so it looks like the show is a go. Myke and Jason have promised a taste of what’s to come during June segments of Upgrade, which will be followed by the new show’s full episodes when the Kickstarter campaign ends. If you want to support the Designed in California campaign, there are a wide variety of backer options from $20 to $1,000 with perks that include ad-free episodes, wallpapers, an enamel pin, a signed print of the show’s artwork, and more depending on how much you pledge.

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Podcast Rewind: macOS 27 Wishes, Pictonico!, Lessons in Pranking, and Packing for WWDC

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts:

AppStories

This week, Federico explains how he’s using the recently-released Notion developer platform before he and John share their wishes for macOS 27.

On AppStories+, John asks Federico about the technical underpinnings and evolution of the Shortcuts Playground project that he published last week.

NPC: Next Portable Console

This week, RG Rotate anticipation, a newish Powkiddy handheld, Pictonico!, and an MCON beta app, plus surprising Lenovo news.

On NPC XL, John went back and tried Claude Code with emulator settings with mixed success, and Brendon reports on his time with GameSir’s Pocket Taco.

Comfort Zone

Chris has a new computer employee, Matt has an existential crisis, and Niléane teaches everyone that pranks don’t have to be mean.

On Cozy Zone, we make our very reasonable predictions for WWDC.

MacStories Unwind

This week, Federico and John share their WWDC gear guides, John recommends a quirky indie movie, and Federico continues to tear his way through a trio of great TV comedies

AppStories, Episode 486, ‘Our macOS 27 Wishes’ Show Notes

This episode is sponsored by:

  • Steamclock – We make great apps. Design and development, from demos to details.

Notion Dev Platform

Our macOS 27 Wishes

AppStories+ Post-Show: Shortcuts Playground, Behind the Scenes

Subscribe to AppStories+

Visit AppStories.net to learn more about the extended, high bitrate audio version of AppStories that is delivered early each week and subscribe.

NPC, Episode 82, ‘Pictonico! Is WarioWare in Disguise’ Show Notes

The Latest Portable Gaming News

Anbernic RG Rotate

Powkiddy Royabilla

Pictonico!

MCON Controller App

Lenovo’s Low-End Handheld Is Real, and It Releases Bigger, Premium Android Tablets

Subscribe to NPC XL

NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month. Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the “regular” NPC episodes. You can subscribe here.

Comfort Zone, Episode 102, ‘Christopher Nolan Doesn’t Use Top Tabs’ Show Notes

Things Discussed

Cozy Zone

For even more from the Comfort Zone crew, you can subscribe to Cozy Zone. Cozy Zone is a weekly bonus episode of Comfort Zone where Matt, Niléane, and Chris invite listeners to join them in the Cozy Zone where they’ll cover extra topics, invent wilder challenges and games, and share all their great (and not so great) takes on tech. You can subscribe to Cozy Zone for $5 per month here or $50 per year here.

MacStories Unwind, ‘WWDC Packing Lists and Weekend Watches’ Show Notes

WWDC 2026 Travel Gear

Federico’s Games

Picks

Unwind Deal

MacStories Unwind+

We deliver MacStories Unwind+ to Club MacStories subscribers ad-free with high bitrate audio every week. To learn more about the benefits of a Club MacStories subscription, visit our Plans page.

MacStories launched its first podcast in 2017 with AppStories. Since then, the lineup has expanded to include a family of weekly shows that also includes MacStories Unwind, Magic Rays of Light, Comfort Zone, NPC: Next Portable Console, and First, Last, Everything that collectively, cover a broad range of the modern media world from Apple’s streaming service and videogame hardware to apps for a growing audience that appreciates our thoughtful, in-depth approach to media.

If you’re interested in advertising on our shows, you can learn more here or by contacting our Managing Editor, John Voorhees.