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v1 Beta · Released 16 October 2026

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The first beta is out for Mac and iPhone. No account, no trial, no tracking: download it, open it, and your first edition arrives in a minute or two.

Download for macOS

v1 Beta · macOS 12 Monterey or later · .zip

What's in the beta

macOS

v1 Beta

The full desktop app: editions, the cited reader, Explore, schedules and sync.

macOS 12 Monterey or later

Download .zip

iPhone

v1 Beta

The companion reader. It shows the edition your Mac builds, through a folder you share.

iOS 17 or later

Download .ipa

Windows

Not yet

The code compiles in CI, but nobody has tested it yet. You can build it from source.

Windows 10 or later

Build from source

Linux

Not yet

The code compiles in CI, but nobody has tested it yet. You can build it from source.

WebKitGTK 4.1

Build from source

Files are hosted on theBETA release on GitHub.

01Install on your Mac

Three steps, once.

macOS 12 Monterey or later. Your data stays in one folder on the Mac, with daily backups beside it.

FreshNews-v1-beta-macos.zip
  1. 1Download the .zipAbout the size of a few photos. Safari usually unzips it for you.
  2. 2Move it to ApplicationsDouble-click the .zip if needed, then drag Fresh News into your Applications folder.
  3. 3Open it the first timeThe beta is not notarised yet, so Control-click the app, choose Open, then Open again. You only do this once.

If macOS says the app is damaged, run this once in Terminal:

xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine "/Applications/Fresh News.app"
02Install on your iPhone

The companion, sideloaded.

iOS 17 or later. Not on the App Store yet, so the beta ships as an .ipa you install yourself.

FreshNews-v1-ios.ipa
  1. 1Download the .ipa on your computeriPhone apps outside the App Store are installed from a Mac or PC.
  2. 2Sideload itUse a sideloading tool such as AltStore or Sideloadly, signed with your own Apple ID.
  3. 3Trust it on the phoneTurn on Settings > Privacy & Security > Developer Mode, then trust your Apple ID under Settings > General > VPN & Device Management.
  4. 4Pick the sync folderChoose the same folder on the Mac and the phone. iCloud Drive works well.

With a free Apple ID the app is signed for seven days and iOS allows three sideloaded apps at a time. Your sideloading tool can refresh it.

Setting up sync
03Windows, Linux, or build it yourself

Not in this beta. Yet.

Windows and Linux compile on every push but haven’t been tested, so there’s no installer for them yet. You can build any platform yourself with Rust, Node 22 and pnpm 10.

Full build guide
Terminal
git clone https://github.com/AstroDevCompany/FreshNews.git && cd FreshNews
cd apps/desktop && corepack enable && pnpm install
pnpm tauri build

Installers end up in target/release/bundle/. On Linux, install the WebKitGTK and secret-service development packages first.

Before you install.

Why does macOS say the app is damaged or from an unidentified developer?

The beta is not yet signed and notarised, which needs a paid Apple Developer membership. Control-click the app and choose Open, or run the xattr command above once. Nothing is wrong with the file.

Why does the iPhone app stop opening after a week?

Apps sideloaded with a free Apple ID are signed for seven days, and iOS allows three of them at a time. Refresh it with your sideloading tool to keep using it. A paid developer account, TestFlight or the App Store removes that limit.

Does the iPhone app work on its own?

No. It is a companion reader: your Mac collects the news, builds the edition and writes the stories, and the phone reads them from a folder you share. It never fetches news or calls an AI provider itself.

When will Windows and Linux builds arrive?

The code already compiles for both on every push, but nobody has run them yet, so there is no installer in this beta. You can build them yourself today, and reports of how it went are very welcome.

Do I need an AI provider?

No. Without one you still get a ranked edition of headlines grouped by event. Add a hosted service with your own key, or a local model through Ollama or LM Studio, to get written, cited stories.

Does Fresh News update itself?

No. There is no update check, because there is no network call that isn’t needed. Watch the releases on GitHub, or this site’s changelog.