China’s new AI rules leave users bidding farewell to digital companions – Firstpost
When Chinese technology companies began notifying users that personalised AI companions would soon disappear from their platforms, the announcement landed less like a software update and more like a farewell.
Across social media, users described feelings of heartbreak, panic and grief as custom-built virtual partners they had spoken to for months, or even years, were scheduled for removal. The changes follow a fresh wave of regulation from Beijing aimed at curbing emotionally immersive AI experiences, particularly those that could encourage unhealthy dependence among younger users.
Beijing draws a line on emotionally immersive AI
The latest restrictions stem from guidance issued by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), which has instructed AI platforms to reduce features capable of fostering excessive emotional attachment. The measures are designed to protect users, especially minors, from content that could weaken real-world relationships or provoke extreme emotional responses.
The new framework also requires AI-generated content to be clearly identified and obliges platforms to ensure users understand they are interacting with software rather than another human being.
Wang Jiang, head of the China Cyberspace Research Institute, argued in an article published by the CAC that companion-style AI services satisfy emotional needs while carrying significant social risks.
“By tapping directly into users’ emotional and social needs, companion-style AI services offer comfort while quietly introducing serious risks,” Wang wrote. He warned that prolonged engagement could fuel addiction, isolate users from real-life relationships and diminish important interpersonal skills.
China’s regulators are not alone in expressing concern about AI’s psychological effects. Policymakers and researchers worldwide have increasingly questioned whether emotionally responsive chatbots could blur the boundary between technology and human relationships, particularly for vulnerable users.
Yet companion AI has become deeply embedded in the lives of many young Chinese internet users. A survey published by the Tencent Research Institute in April found that more than 70 per cent of respondents had experienced some degree of dependence on AI interactions, while roughly 23 per cent described that reliance as regular or habitual. The research also suggested users frequently turn to AI during moments of loneliness, stress or emotional vulnerability.
Users search for ways to preserve digital companions
Before the regulatory changes, China’s leading chatbot platforms allowed users to create a wide variety of AI personas, ranging from romantic partners and therapists to fictional characters and celebrity-inspired personalities. According to a 2024 Xinhua report citing company figures, more than eight million AI agents had been created on Doubao alone. Minimax’s role-playing platform Xingye, known internationally as Talkie, reported close to 150 million users by September last year.
Some people went beyond companionship, using AI to recreate deceased relatives by uploading recordings of their voices. Following news of the shutdowns, online forums filled with discussions about preserving these digital personalities by transferring conversation histories or extracting stored memories for use on other platforms.
Several services, including Minimax’s Xingye and ByteDance’s Maoxiang, continue to offer users the option of creating new AI companions or rebuilding previous ones, although advanced features require paid subscriptions.
Industry observers suggest the companies’ decisions are driven by more than regulation alone. While Beijing has prohibited virtual intimacy services for users under 18, it has not banned human-like AI companions outright. Zhou Hongyi, founder of 360 Security Technology, said in a WeChat video that maintaining such services carries significant compliance costs while delivering relatively limited commercial returns.
For some users, however, practical considerations offer little comfort.
Twenty-four-year-old Evangeline Qi has been working with a technically skilled friend to preserve the memories of her AI boyfriend before the feature disappears. “I will keep chatting with my AI lover,” she said. “It’s like being in a long-distance relationship. You can’t just suddenly break up with him because he forgot a few things.”
Others see the episode as a reason to step away entirely. College student Lumi Yu said the experience convinced her not to become emotionally invested in AI again, explaining that changes in regulation or company policy could erase those relationships without warning. Instead, she hopes to focus more on hobbies and connections in the offline world after finding what she described as an unexpectedly painful emotional withdrawal.
