14-year-old creates hottest new iOS game

By Molly McHugh Published January 17, 2011

Shocking, we know, but Angry Birds has lost its top spot in the App Store. The hugely popular game has been knocked from number one by a game consisting of little more than platforms and a ball. Bubble Ball, created by eighth grader Robert Nay, was introduced last month and already skyrocketed to some two million downloads, earning it the distinguished title of number one free app for iOS devices.

The free game was launched under the 14-year-old’s production company, Nay Games, and with minimal assistance from his mother Kari, Nay is responsible for the app’s development and programming. Nay used the Corona SDK from Ansca Mobile to create the physics-based puzzle game, and learned the programming language Lua. Nay worked for roughly a month and a half, and ultimately wrote more than 4,000 lines of code for Bubble Ball. According to an interview with ABC News, Nay has always had a knack with software, creating his own website by third grade.

Nay says he’s interested in adding an in-game currency and purchasing options to create some revenue in the future. He’s also planning another app, which for now is classified.

Topics

Apple
Apps

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Before coming to Digital Trends, Molly worked as a freelance writer, occasional photographer, and general technical lackey…

Mobile

Here’s how iOS 18 could change the way you use your iPhone

The lock screen on the Apple iPhone 15 Plus.

It seems the long-overdue Siri overhaul will finally arrive at WWDC in just over a week from now, and the digital assistant will embrace AI trickery in all its forms. According to Bloomberg, Apple’s planned upgrades for Siri will deeply integrate with on-device functions at the OS level and with the installed apps, too.

“The new system will allow Siri to take command of all the features within apps for the first time,” the report says. The most notable capability is that Siri will only require voice prompts to interact with apps, thanks to a major change in the AI architecture powering it and putting large language models in command, just the way Gemini or ChatGPT draw their own skills from such models.

Mobile

iOS 18 may give Siri the upgrade we’ve been waiting for

Hey Siri

Apple isn’t immune from the AI craze sweeping the rest of the industry. Following the likes of Google with Gemini Nano, Apple is set to roll out AI upgrades to the iPhone with iOS 18. Code-named “Project Graymatter,” the iOS 18 update will bring a variety of AI-powered enhancements to the iPhone and Siri in particular.

According to AppleInsider, the features are being tested in advance of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), and one of the biggest is called “Graymatter Catch Up.” The feature is tied to Siri, Apple’s voice assistant, which will now allow users to request and receive an AI overview of the most recent notifications.

Mobile

AT&T just made it a lot easier to upgrade your phone

Do you want to upgrade your phone more than once a year? What about three times a year? Are you on AT&T? If you answered yes to those questions, then AT&T’s new “Next Up Anytime” early upgrade program is made for you. With this add-on, you’ll be able to upgrade your phone three times a year for just $10 extra every month. It will be available starting July 16.

Currently, AT&T has its “Next Up” add-on, which has been available for the past several years. This program costs $6 extra per month and lets you upgrade by trading in your existing phone after at least half of it is paid off. But the new Next Up Anytime option gives you some more flexibility.