Apple Says 100,000 iPhone Duo Apps Now Live on App Store

Apple says more than 100,000 apps built for the iPhone Duo are now live on the App Store, with thousands more arriving every day. The company announced the milestone on Friday, directly answering the most common criticism in early reviews of its $1,999 foldable: the thin catalog of Duo-optimized software at launch.

The announcement coincided with the release of over a dozen notable Duo-ready apps, including Microsoft Word, Outlook, Zoom, NBA and NHL sports apps, the shopping platforms Etsy and LTK, the productivity apps Goodnotes and Extra, and the Halide Mark III camera app. They join Duo-optimized versions of Netflix, YouTube, Instagram and WhatsApp that were already available.

Why the app gap mattered

Non-optimized apps run on the Duo with a black bar along one side of the screen. The bar eats display space. It also sometimes pushes important functions into an overflow menu, degrading the experience on a device whose main selling point is its large folding display.

Apple's own data suggests many iOS developers needed extra time to adapt to the new form factor. The company said over 2,000 developers attended more than 50 in-person workshops across 19 cities worldwide, where they could use the Duo hardware and refine their apps with Apple's support.

What did Apple say about the milestone?

"It's been wonderful to see how quickly developers have embraced iPhone Duo, and we're grateful for their creativity and innovation," said Susan Prescott, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations, in a statement. "The enthusiasm has been incredible, and we're excited to see the pace of updates continue to accelerate as more and more apps optimize for iPhone Duo," she added.

Demand is outrunning supply

The Duo has sold faster than Apple apparently planned at its premium price. The 256GB model starts at $1,999. Orders sold out within hours of opening, and Duo ship times have now shifted into next year. On its earnings call this week, Apple said it is "hard to predict" when the supply constraints driving those delays will improve.

That combination — constrained hardware supply and accelerating software output — defines the Duo's first months on the market.

Which apps made the list?

Apple also published a long list of apps updated for iOS 27 and optimized for the Duo. The names span nearly every major category:

• Media and news: Spotify, CBS, Tubi, BBC iPlayer (UK), The Washington Post, Yahoo News, FOX News, Substack
• AI and messaging: ChatGPT, Grok Bot, Microsoft Copilot, Facebook Messenger, Google Chat
• Productivity: Excel, PowerPoint, SAP Concur, monday.com, PDF Expert, Documents, iA Writer, Canva
• Sports and fitness: Yahoo Fantasy Sports, Sportsnet (Canada), Strava, MyFitnessPal, Withings
• Finance and shopping: Kalshi, Yahoo Finance, Priceline, Kroger
• Food and travel: Domino's, Taco Bell, Untappd, Viator, ParkMobile
• Transport and weather: Tesla Robotaxi, Citi Bike, Transit, The Weather Channel, FOX Weather, RainViewer
• Lifestyle and creative: Tinder, Google Translate, Suno, Alma, Bevel

What is still rolling out?

Not every update has fully shipped. Spotify, for example, still shows the black bar on the reviewer's Duo unit, and the App Store does not yet list an available update on that device. The list comes directly from Apple, so these updates should land soon.

For Apple, the software math now favors the Duo: 100,000 optimized apps and thousands more per day, against a hardware backlog that stretches into next year with no firm fix date.