A new discovery suggests Apple may be using Anthropic's Claude internally. Recently, the latest update to the Apple Support app inadvertently included internally intended CLAUDE.md files.
Researcher and analyst Aaron Perris discovered these files and Chia them on X (formerly Twitter).
Has Apple's AI workflow been leaked?
CLAUDE.md is a feature of Claude Code, an AI programming assistant developed by Anthropic. Programmers add these markdown files to their project folders, and Claude Code reads them at the start of each work session.
These files are used to set programming standards, define system architecture , specify which libraries to use, and create checklists for code review.
“These files are typically kept in source code repositories and should never appear in an official release,” International Cyber Digest wrote . “And this further confirms that Apple is using Claude for internal work.”
In the Chia screenshots, the first file depicts a chat module combining Juno AI and real-world support staff. This file describes three Vai involved in the message forwarding system: customer, staff, and assistant.
Notably, this architecture also relies on compiler flags such as JUNO_ENABLED and DEV_BUILD. Furthermore, the file mentions content from Apple's internal error reporting system, suggesting it originates from the company's actual source code.
A second file refers to SAComponents, a shared user interface (UI) library that supports multiple Apple platforms, including visionOS. This library separates the UI from the business logic and supports both SwiftUI and UIKit.
The appearance of Claude files in the public release could be a packaging error during software release. This also suggests that Apple engineers are using Claude in internal development.
The public relationship between Apple and Anthropic is deepening.
Previously, Apple confirmed support for Claude Sonnet 4 in Xcode 26 in September 2025. In February 2026, the company further expanded this support to Xcode 26.3. This update also added native integration with the Claude Agent SDK .
The company is renowned for its tight control over hardware, software, and security. This closed operating system is what has shaped Apple's image as a technology company that prioritizes security above all else.
The inclusion of CLAUDE.md files in the new release suggests that Anthropic's tool is also present alongside internal solutions, raising questions about how Apple balances the use of external AI with its tightly controlled software ecosystem.
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