Failed iOS Build with Expo on GitHub Actions: CocoaPod Error

Question

I'm working on a React Native app using Expo, and I've successfully built the APK for Android but am facing issues with building for iOS. The app is essentially just the Expo template. My GitHub Actions workflow fails when trying to build for iOS. I'm particularly interested in using the artifacts generated by the workflow.

Here is the relevant part of my GitHub Actions workflow:

      - name: Install CocoaPods dependencies
        run: |
          cd ios
          pod setup
          pod cache clean --all
          pod install

Here is the almost complete workflow

jobs:
  prepare-js-bundle-ios:
    name: Prepare JavaScript Bundle with Metro for iOS
    runs-on: macos-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
        
      - name: Cache node modules
        uses: actions/cache@v3
        with:
          path: ~/.npm
          key: ${{ runner.os }}-node-${{ hashFiles('**/package-lock.json') }}
          restore-keys: |
            ${{ runner.os }}-node-
            
      - name: Cache Watchman
        uses: actions/cache@v3
        with:
          path: |
            /usr/local/Cellar/watchman
          key: ${{ runner.os }}-watchman-${{ hashFiles('**/Brewfile.lock.json') }}
          restore-keys: |
            ${{ runner.os }}-watchman-
      
      - name: Setup Node.js environment
        uses: actions/setup-node@v3
        with:
          node-version: '21'

      - name: Install Watchman
        run: |
          if ! watchman --version; then
            brew install watchman
          else
            echo "Watchman is already installed."
          fi

      - name: Setup CocoaPods
        run: |
          sudo gem install cocoapods
          sudo gem update cocoapods

      - name: Install Xcode Command Line Tools
        run: xcode-select --install || true # The `|| true` ensures that if command line tools are already installed, the workflow doesn't fail.
          
      - name: Install npm dependencies
        run: npm i
   
      - name: Bundle JavaScript with Metro for iOS
        run: |
          npx expo prebuild -p ios
          npx react-native bundle --platform ios --dev false --entry-file index.js --bundle-output ios/main.jsbundle --assets-dest ios

      - name: Update Podfile platform version
        run: |
          sed -i '' "s/^platform :ios,.*/platform :ios, '13.4'/" ios/Podfile

      - name: Modify Podfile
        run: |
          echo "use_modular_headers!" >> ios/Podfile  
          
         
      - name: Install CocoaPods dependencies
        run: |
          cd ios
          pod setup
          pod cache clean --all
          pod install
      
      - name: Build iOS app (Xcode build)
        run: |
          cd ios
          xcodebuild -workspace wordguesser-app.xcworkspace -scheme wordguesser-app -configuration Release -sdk iphoneos BUILD_LIBRARY_FOR_DISTRIBUTION=YES

and finally the error i get:

Setting REACT_NATIVE build settings

[!] `<PBXResourcesBuildPhase UUID=`13B07F8E1A680F5B00A75B9A`>` attempted to initialize an object with an unknown UUID. `83FE304946FB4310A55A14A4` for attribute: `files`. This can be the result of a merge and the unknown UUID is being discarded.
Setting CLANG_CXX_LANGUAGE_STANDARD to c++20 on /Users/runner/work/wordguesser-app/wordguesser-app/ios/myapp.xcodeproj
Pod install took 150 [s] to run
[!] An error occurred while processing the post-install hook of the Podfile.

undefined method `__apply_Xcode_12_5_M1_post_install_workaround' for #<Pod::Podfile:0x00007fbab12f82a8 @defined_in_file=#<Pathname:/Users/runner/work/wordguesser-app/wordguesser-app/ios/Podfile>, @internal_hash={"installation_method"=>{"name"=>"cocoapods", "options"=>{:deterministic_uuids=>false}}}, @root_target_definitions=[#<Pod::Podfile::TargetDefinition label=Pods>], @current_target_definition=#<Pod::Podfile::TargetDefinition label=Pods>, @post_install_callback=#<Proc:0x00007fbab1912f80 /Users/runner/work/wordguesser-app/wordguesser-app/ios/Podfile:60>, @post_integrate_callback=#<Proc:0x00007fbab1912f08 /Users/runner/work/wordguesser-app/wordguesser-app/ios/Podfile:80>, @installation_options=#<Pod::Installer::InstallationOptions:0x00007fbaae4ee970 @clean=true, @deduplicate_targets=true, @deterministic_uuids=false, @integrate_targets=true, @lock_pod_sources=true, @warn_for_multiple_pod_sources=true, @warn_for_unused_master_specs_repo=true, @share_schemes_for_development_pods=false, @disable_input_output_paths=false, @preserve_pod_file_structure=false, @generate_multiple_pod_projects=false, @incremental_installation=false, @skip_pods_project_generation=false, @parallel_pod_downloads=false, @parallel_pod_download_thread_pool_size=40>>

app.json

{
  "expo": {
    "name": "my-app",
    "slug": "my-app",
    "version": "1.0.0",
    "orientation": "portrait",
    "icon": "./assets/icon.png",
    "userInterfaceStyle": "light",
    "splash": {
      "image": "./assets/splash.png",
      "resizeMode": "contain",
      "backgroundColor": "#ffffff"
    },
    "assetBundlePatterns": [
      "**/*"
    ],
    "ios": {
      "bundleIdentifier": "com.test.test",
      "supportsTablet": true
    },
    "android": {
      "adaptiveIcon": {
        "foregroundImage": "./assets/adaptive-icon.png",
        "backgroundColor": "#ffffff"
      },
      "package": "com.sebastian.arthur.kull.test"
    },
    "web": {
      "favicon": "./assets/favicon.png"
    }
  }
}

I'm unsure how to resolve this issue. It seems like there's a problem with CocoaPods or the Podfile, but I can't pinpoint the exact cause or how to fix it. Any insights or solutions would be greatly appreciated!