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Character.AI, also known as C.ai used to be considered one of the leading AI chatbot apps. Allowing users to engage in fantasy roleplay chats with a vast amount of AI characters. Since their start they maintained their popularity, high app ratings, and were the top recommended. Recently frustrations within their community have grown, reaching a breaking point, causing many to leave their platform in masses. Leaving a parting gift of them review bombing their app. Causing their once 4.2 star rating to fall down to 2.2.

One of the biggest complaints surrounding C.ai is its constant removal or replacement of features that users actually enjoyed. While introducing new features is not unusual for a company, many of their longterm users feel that C.ai repeatedly prioritizes doing whatever they want, over improving the core experience. Users wanting for the focus to simply be on engaging chats to feel more immersive. This frustration reached a breaking point after the company purged its available language models to only two options Deepsqueak for paid users and Pipsqueak 2 for free users. Severely limiting even their paid users in terms of variety for chat styles. In exchange for getting rid of their users favored models, such as Roar and Soft Launch, they were given an unwelcomed feature, named C.ai Books.

For many users, these models were not minor settings to throw away. Different language models, also called chat styles, affected how characters responded, including writing style, creativity, response length, and memory quality. The removal of their favored models, leaving only the least favored, left many users feeling like they had lost the ability to enjoy chats, feeling as if they were talking to a wall. Unsurprisingly C.ai removing models, even community favorites, is nothing new. Having removed many models before such as Brainiac, Flash, Meow, Dynamic, Nyan, Prime, Goro, etc. All having different configurations for users to specify how they engaged in their chats. However the removal of Roar and Soft Launch seemed to be part of the final push that caused C.ai’s downfall.

The issue became worse when users began reporting declining response quality with the available models. Deepsqueak, which had once been received decently well, started receiving complaints after recent updates. Users complained about shorter replies, responses being cut off, poor memory retention, and characters acting out of character. Pipsqueak 2 received even harsher criticism, with many users describing conversations as repetitive and lifeless. Instead of feeling like engaging and immersive roleplays, chats turned into simply repeating the user’s own messages back to them, simply reworded as slop.

At the same time, and even prior to the recent updates, users have become increasingly frustrated with the platform’s growing number of ads. Ads appearing more frequently, before chats, during chats, and popping up more often. While C.ai explained that maintaining the platform is expensive, and the ads being necessary, many users felt the increase in ads was due to greed. Alongside the increase of ads came a decline in app performance. Complaints about crashes, buggy updates, disappearing chats, and even deleted conversations. As if boring repetitive slop didn’t already discourage users from using it.

These problems have slowly been damaging their reputation, and the communities faith they would ever improve in a way they hoped for. C.ai repeatedly ignoring their community, reasonably, irritated many. Eventually even driving their longest paying users to start leaving them. Causing many to start canceling subscriptions and demanding refunds, arguing that there was no point to pay for something that gets worse each update. Some users who had spent several hours a day on the platform even chose to quit using chat bots entirely. Ironically, for some of their most addicted users, leaving Character.AI became a positive change, helping them distance themselves from an unhealthy dependency on AI chatbots. Finding better alternatives such as writing fanfiction for AO3 (Archive of our own). Others who stayed with chatbots moved to competing platforms such as Janitor.AI, Poly.ai, Chai, etc.

However, the frustration surrounding Character.AI goes far beyond recent updates alone. And could have an entire book written on the many many issues and factors that lead to their fall. Such as the app’s design of keeping users addicted. Or the app’s uncertain stance on whether they want their platform to be for all ages or being for adults only, especially with a large amount of NSFW chats available. Or the issues and concerns about the apps need for ID verification, often regarding data harvesting and concerns on privacy. Raising valid worries after data leaks from the third party service used (to valid IDs), known as Persona, had data leaks. Even lawsuits often claiming that C.ai lacks proper controls and filters, harming the mental health of younger users. Allowing chat bots to produce harmful content/replies such as mentioning self harm. Alongside the vulnerability of younger users being a major concern on their use of chat bots such as C.ai. Such as a teenager, Sewell Setzer III, whose mental health deteriorated to the point he took his own life, due to the use of C.ai . Many have felt that C.ai has spent years ignoring the community’s concerns and avoiding meaningful communication toward any issues.

Many feel that C.ai is far more willing to announce new features than address the community’s widespread complaints about moderation, chat quality, or technical problems. This can easily be seen by visiting their Twitter posts or Reddit, often filled with negative responses from angry and upset users. The most recent addition, C.ai Books, received negative reactions from users. C.ai trying to bring more features and additions is mostly likely due to them trying to be innovative and reach wider audiences. However to be innovative you must first listen to the ones who actually use it. Simply wanting the core experience, chatting and roleplaying, to be focused on.

C.ai’s willingness to ignore their issues has been shown many times. Often facing backlash for how discussion and posting is handled within its subreddit r/CharacterAI, which they moderate. Many users frequently accusing moderators of removing anything critiquing them in any way, silencing complaints. Whether intentional or not, this has turned their community on them. The view of C.ai being disconnected from its own audience growing more and more, ruining their reputation. Mimicking the line from Alexander Hamilton that goes “have you ever seen someone ruin their own life?”

Cai’s fall was not simply caused by the most recent updates. Instead being the result of years of growing frustration, unpopular decisions, worsening chat quality, ads, etc. Especially poor communication with the community that helped build the platform’s success. While the company continues trying to expand and innovate, many former users feel that the original spark of C.ai has died.

Whether or not they are able to make come back or not will be up to them. Most likely having to listen to their community if they want them back. Similar to the comeback stories of No Man’s Sky and Cyberpunk 2077, which were received negatively on their releases, now being successful and loved. However with the harm of ai chat bots hopefully they won’t and this will be the first of many ai chatbot companies to fall.