OSX - operation cannot be completed because "" needs to be downloaded

Late to the party, but had this issue as well. Solved it by left-clicking on the app and selecting "Get Info" (cmd i) and change the permissions for admin and everyone to Read & Write. You may have to click on the lock icon in the bottom right of the screen to authenticate as an admin.

Hello kenana192,

Thank you for reaching out in Apple Support Communities. Our recommendation is to restart your Mac in safe mode and see if you can verify that the app has been uninstalled or deleted. Once this is complete, you can restart your Mac as normal and see if that helps. If needed, here's how to restart a Mac in safe mode:

Start up your Mac with Apple silicon in safe mode

1. On your Mac, choose Apple menu  > Shut Down.

2. Wait for your Mac to shut down completely. A Mac is completely shut down when the screen is black and any lights (including in the Touch Bar) are off.

3. Press and hold the power button on your Mac until “Loading startup options” appears.

4. Select a volume.

5. Press and hold the Shift key, then click Continue in Safe Mode.

6. The computer restarts automatically. When the login window appears, you should see “Safe Boot” in the menu bar.

These steps are outlined in this helpful article: Start up your Mac in safe mode - Apple Support

Kind regards.

I'm having the exact same problem except I think I accidentally moved it to iCloud Drive.

So now it's an application on my Home Screen but next to the name there's a little cloud with an exclamation mark inside of the cloud and whenever I try to delete I get the same message as the creator of the post.

What do I do?

Thanks, had the exact same problem and it worked! Definitely easier than restarting in safe mode...

What a bizarre fix. It worked for me! I can't thank you enough seaneee.