Character.AI announced on Tuesday that it is launching “Storiesa new format that allows users to create interactive fantasy featuring their favorite characters. The feature comes as an alternative to the company’s chatbots, which are no longer accessible to users under 18 as of this week.
The change follows growing concerns about the mental health risks of AI chatbots that are available 24/7 and can start conversations with users. Several lawsuits have been filed against companies such as OpenAI and Character.AI for their alleged role in user suicides. For the past month, Character.AI has been phasing out access for minors, and as of Tuesday, underage users can no longer chat with its AI characters at all.
“Stories offer a guided way to create and explore fiction, rather than open-ended conversation,” the company said in the blog post. “It will be offered alongside our other multimodal features so teens can continue to interact with their favorite characters in a safety-first environment.”
Interactive fiction has seen a increase in popularity in recent years, so the Character.AI spin makes sense. But it may not be enough to satisfy users who have become overly dependent on chatbots — all the more reason why Character.AI’s decision to limit chatbot access was justified.
On the Character.AI subreddit, reactions are mixed. According to their comments, some teenagers say that while they are disappointed, they believe it is the right move after all.
“I’m so angry about the ban but also so happy because now I can do other things and my addiction can finally end,” wrote one user who identified himself as a teenager.
Another said, “as someone who is under 18 this is just disappointing. but rightfully so, people here my age are addicted to it.”
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It remains to be seen how teenagers will use the Stories feature, but the format is less psychologically dubious than chatbot role-playing. Unlike Stories, chatbots interact directly with users in open conversations and can send messages without prompting even when users aren’t actively using the app.
Character.AI’s decision to regulate chatbot access on age comes as California recently became the first state to regulate AI companions. Meanwhile, Senators Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) have introduced a national bill which would completely ban AI companions for minors.
“I really hope that we’re leading the way in setting a standard in the industry that for under-18s, open conversations is probably not the path or the product to offer,” Character.AI CEO Karandeep Anand told TechCrunch last month.
