What will happen to MIT apps when google makes us register and pay this much to test?

Are you all aware that in September we won’t be able to test our apps on Android anymore? Is there a fix, a workaround, or a solution for this? I’d like some explanations, please. ive just read that a waiting period of 24 hrs to just test 1 app at the time .. sometimes here i test 20 times in a row before im all set to release an app.. so ill have to wait 20 days to do the same thing 1 test per 24 hrs! this dosent make any sence whats so ever! we need to stop google from doing this.. or this web site like all devs will drop and not just that inovation will drop.. IDIOCRACY will follow right after.. no more new stuff just what AI can re use from old stuff they will destroy inovation for the future..

It is only Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore, or Thailand affected from Sep 30, rest of the world sometime in 2027+.

and also this, where Google offer a "workaround":

Other opposition:

From FDroid News - this is about ADV (Android Developer Verifier) :wink:

I haven't looked at this in a while, but my understanding is that you have to wait 24 hours to put your device into developer mode. Once you're in developer mode you won't have to keep waiting between updates. The reasoning is that scammer use a sense of urgency to get people to put their phones into developer mode to install malicious software, but if you have to wait a day for it to take effect that sense of urgency gets lost and would allow the scammer's mark to wise up to what is happening. It of course puts friction in the way of people with legitimate use cases.

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Seems I may have made the right move (installing GrapheneOS on my Google Pixel devices):

grapheneos android developer verification?

GrapheneOS is not affected by Google’s new developer verification requirements, which are set to take effect in March 2026. This policy mandates identity verification for app developers on certified Android devices (those with Google Mobile Services), but GrapheneOS runs without Google certification or Play Services, placing it outside the policy's enforcement scope.

  • Sideloading remains open: Users can continue to install apps from any source, including independent stores like F-Droid, without encountering verification gates.
  • Technical exemption: The verification system relies on a proprietary Google package installer that GrapheneOS does not include, leaving the standard AOSP package installer unchanged.
  • Ecosystem impact: While GrapheneOS sidesteps the verification rule, users may still face indirect challenges, such as apps refusing to run due to uncertified device status or hardware attestation failures.

Time will tell, need to wait until someone tells me ADV is up and running in the UK...

And then I had this tremendous stupid idea.

I am writing a book on PWAs (Progressive web apps). These work on Android and on IOS but also on Windows and Linux. So code once and it works on everything.
Better yet: you do not need the app stores to distribute your apps and no developer account and no fees. You even do not have to follow their conventions for UI etc. So total freedom.
And like said the programs you make work on every platform. My book is for beginners.

So what is the stupid Idea ???
Why not alter App Inventor in such a way that it does not produce an APK but produces HTML with plain vanilla Javascript so we can turn it into a web app.
I already started programming something like this with the help of my good friend chatGPT.
But I have to admit it is too big a project for me alone and I already have multiple other projects (like my book) boiling.
Any developers here who want to give it a go. Might solve a lot of our problems.
I am willing to coordinate the project.

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Not a stupid idea at all, but would no doubt require a complete re-write of the entire Appinventor codebase!

What might help (for those with html/css/js under their belts) is to provide a guide on creating a really simple one page pwa, and the process to install it on a mobile phone...
[edit]
I now believe I have figured most of this out - only thing is that I get the browsers "flair" icon on the PWA main icon, for example, where you see the AI2 logo on my user icon here:

image

Perhaps I need a service worker? I have no Google Play Services on my phone (this could also be it)

I have also found:

which seems to be the canonical for PWA?

What might help (for those with html/css/js under their belts) is to provide a guide on creating a really simple one page pwa, and the process to install it on a mobile phone...

To answer your question about the icon: yes you need a service worker and a manifest. then you need to put these with minimal 2 icons at a server that can supply html files. And then you can install it. Best part is that it does not look anymore as a html page on a browser screen. It will get a app screen just like a regular app. Sounds complicated but really is not.

And a PWA is platform independent. You build it once, test on your Windows computer and it will work on a Linux machine, IOS machine, Android Phone and tablet and IOS phone and tablet.
Kind of magic………..
Of course there are platform dependent issues like a desktop machine has no GPS, Gyro etc. Screen sizes. But all these can be tested and adjusted in the software. And easily.

That is actually what my book is about. Including updates. Free distribution, full screen apps, existing free app stores, removing apps, building or getting icons, webservers for distribution, updates, installation buttons, quit buttons, online and offline, loads of phone functions (including making photo’s, video’s and playing audio), hiding your code etc etc etc. Everything written to be understood for everyone and no frameworks and libraries. No expensive hardware to buy. Anybody can be a developer just as App Inventor was intended to be.

However that is building an PWA from existing JavaScript code.
I would like to have app inventor to build the HTML file. Because that is how we are used to build our apps.

Shameless plug:
send me an email if you want a notification when the book is released. I am finishing it. I think it will be published internationally in september/oktober.
Luc

Coming back to this: Microsoft Makecode for Micro:bit already does something like what I would like. It turns blocks into JavaScript. So it can be done. It is only specific for the Micro:bit and what we would need is to make it for phones, tablets and desktop machines.

If you would like a peek: Microsoft MakeCode for micro:bit

And the library for building blocks is free:

Thats quite good I also did this and deployed it with vercel.com was actually better then I layered it in a web app using mit app.. but I can just use the link no mit layers.. but this is stupid what Google is doing punishing small devs for a few bad apples.. did u all know that 9 out 10 ads from meta and Google are scams. And they want to restrict us when they promote thoses scams in ever single ads.

No its only 1 app we can run like this if we install a new version we have to uninstall it to re install the new version and wait 24 hrs

The link to the Google blog previously posted by TIMAI2 suggests you only have to do the 24 hour wait once. Do you have a link to support your claim?

Reading through the Android Developers Blog, the Advanced Flow will not be available until August 2026, so not sure what @Erik_Boivin was using to overcome verification ?

hi, my englisch is not the best (not a native speaker)… can anybody explain what it means for the usage of ai2 for me as a beginner and private user who do not publish apps or tries to earn money. I mainly use it e.g. to control Arduino or ESP32 robots via tablet. So… when i develop an app with AI2 (i was glad to found this web tool instead of using Android Developer Studio) i test my app serveral times a day via Companion / USB connection / WLAN + QR-Code (i choose what works best for the moment). Does this threat mean that this will not be possible in future? So all gained experience from the last month / year will be useless an i can not use AI2 to develop apps with personal purpose i described?

Best regards…

Please read everything (including the links provided) above! This is all we know at the current time.

the reason take my time to ask the question here is of course because i read it. maybe not understand it. but your answer says me that i will possibly affected in my usage habits. so blockly might be an alternative or Android developer studio itself but also there i have to transfer my project serveral time a day to the device to test. so… i will stop further investigation in this topic / tool / android development until i is more clearly for me (and maybe for you) what the above written will mean in reality.

In essence, as a developer who understands the "risks", you should be able to use the Advanced Flow, when it is released (Aug 2026), which will allow you to install unverified apps on your device.

I have used ADB ( Android Debug Bridge ) commands to install and test my apps on my phone.
You can bypass the device restrictions entirely by installing the app from your computer.

Yes, it certainly looks like this (adb) is a simple way forward:

android developer verifier bypass with install apk via adb

ADB installations are exempt from the new Android Developer Verification requirements and the mandatory 24-hour waiting period for sideloading.

To bypass verification and install an APK immediately via ADB:

  • Enable Developer Options: Go to Settings > About Phone and tap Build Number seven times.
  • Activate USB Debugging: Go to Settings > Developer Options and enable USB Debugging.
  • Connect and Authorize: Connect your device to your computer via USB, accept the authorization prompt on the device, and verify the connection with adb devices.
  • Install the APK: Run the command adb install <path-to-apk>.

For wireless ADB, you can pair the device via Developer Options > Wireless Debugging and install APKs without a physical cable, which also bypasses the verification restrictions.

We have also implemented the "My Saved Apps" feature so if you don't need to package your APK, you can simply save the code in the companion app and run it from there. This feature was originally developed for iOS because of the complexity of building even ad hoc apps that you want to use for a limited audience and in situations where people are unable to sign the Apple Developer License (e.g., due to being under the age of majority and therefore not legally allowed to sign contracts). The "My Saved Apps" feature has since been released on both platforms.

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This kind of policy shift makes me appreciate simpler side projects even more — no app-store overhead, no registration hassle. Hope MIT finds a good path forward for hobbyist devs here.