What changed in AI companions
Companion apps mutate constantly: prices rise quietly, models get swapped under your companion's personality, policies reverse overnight. Nobody keeps the record, so users find out the hard way. This page is the record: every change we track, dated and sourced, newest first.
July 2026
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Industry shutdown being verified
ByteDance, Tencent, and Alibaba wind down AI companion products in China
Chinese platforms including Doubao and Qwen-linked companion offerings began shutting down companion features amid regulatory pressure, one of the largest simultaneous shutdown events in the category and a reminder that companions can disappear with their platforms.
April 2026
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Character AI model being verified
Roar model replaced by PipSqueak 2
Character AI swapped its Roar model for PipSqueak 2. Model swaps on character platforms change how every existing character writes, which is why users experience them as personality changes rather than upgrades.
March 2026
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Character AI feature being verified
Swipes, playbacks, and Memos removed
Character AI removed several long-standing features (alternate-reply swipes, playbacks, Memos) in a series of early-2026 changes that free-tier users experienced as a steady narrowing of the product.
January 2026
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Character AI policy being verified
Character AI rolls out age verification via Persona
Following the under-18 ban, Character AI began requiring age verification through Persona, including ID or face-scan checks for flagged accounts. Backlash contributed to the iOS App Store rating falling sharply.
November 2025
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Character AI policy being verified
Character AI ends open-ended chat for under-18 users
Character AI announced that users under 18 lose access to open-ended companion chat, with age verification to follow. One of the largest policy changes in the category's history, affecting a substantial share of its user base.
August 2025
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ChatGPT model being verified
GPT-4o retired with GPT-5 rollout; companion personalities change overnight
OpenAI's GPT-5 rollout replaced GPT-4o as the default model. Users with long-running companion relationships on 4o widely reported the new model felt colder, prompting a documented grief wave and, after backlash, a partial restoration of 4o access for paid users.
April 2025
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Replika legal being verified
Italian regulator fines Replika's maker over data protection
Italy's data protection authority fined Luka, Inc. (Replika) approximately €5M over GDPR failures including age verification, following its earlier 2023 temporary ban of the app in Italy.
February 2023
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Replika policy being verified
Replika removes erotic roleplay (ERP); partially restores it for legacy users a month later
Replika abruptly filtered romantic/erotic roleplay for all users in February 2023, causing the category's most famous user revolt. In March 2023 it restored ERP for accounts created before February 2023. The episode remains the canonical example of why policy changes need a public record.