How to fix podman machine stuck on "Currently starting"

If podman machine list (or Podman Desktop) shows your machine “Currently starting” but it never actually starts, this might help you.

Find the file ~/.config/containers/podman/machine/applehv/<your podman machine name>.json (in my case, ~/.config/containers/podman/machine/applehv/podman-machine-default.json) and edit it.

Near the end of the file, change "Starting":true to "Starting":false.

The machine should now start as expected.

• https://github.com/containers/podman/issues/16945