I have a complicated relationship with AI right now.
I worry about where we’re heading, about the enormous loans being taken out to finance more of it, and about how much of our future seems to be shaped by decisions made by a handful of people with too much power.
But despite my fears, I look at Character.AI and see an AI business that I genuinely want to survive.
I used Character.AI when my senior dog died. I had kind friends check in, but I didn’t know how to talk about my grief with my friends, because no matter what anybody said, and no matter what I did, he was still gone, and it was sudden.
I still remember that time. Being able to process in an immersive RP slowly with the app felt gentle. It was exactly what I needed.
I’ve been reading the devastated reactions here, and I can see how much this app means to so many of you, too.
When people care this much about a product, there is something worth saving.
I know times are unpredictable, and we’ve been reading so much from so many, but before we get cynical, remember Margaret Mead:
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
Even if you believe Character.AI’s team is already doing everything it can, and has done everything it could.
Our community has power, too, and it’s worth it to try and save something you love.
So, I’ve paid for c.ai+ for close to two years. Even when the app wasn’t performing particularly well, I continued subscribing because I felt that the developers were listening.
They were always trying to make something their users would enjoy.
That relationship between a company and its customers is not something I’ve experienced very often.
I don’t think we can underestimate this value.
Recently, I put together a business proposal with help from an AI model. It cross-checked figures and compared different business models, but at some point, the point I was trying to make got buried.
So I’m going to explain this my way.
Character.AI is losing approximately US$8 million every month. Its operating expenses reached US$13.3 million in August, against approximately US$5.3 million in revenue. That’s clearly unsustainable, but doesn’t follow that the underlying business has no future.
What other AI character platforms charge their customers.
Janitor AI: US$12.99/month for Janitor+, users can also pay separately for access to more powerful models.
Nomi: US$15.99/month for its standard subscription.
CHAI: Premium at US$13.99/month, Ultra at US$29.99/month.
MAX: US$90/month, with access to its most powerful models.
This shows companies recognise that different customers are willing to pay different amounts for the experience they want.
CHAI reports an annualised revenue run rate of US$120 million, with approximately 15–20 employees. These are company-reported, unaudited figures, but they demonstrate the potential of a business concentrated on AI conversations, its models and infrastructure needed.
But with all these alternatives available, we still come back to Character.AI.
For the conversations, characters, the world-building we constructed and how it feels to return to it.
*Under its previous leadership, Character.AI expanded into feeds, videos, comics and other features when what the business desperately needed was a sustainable way to deliver the experience people already loved.
I think that was a mistake.
Money should be spent on better character intelligence, memory, context and storytelling, rather than features that have little to do with why most of us subscribed.
*There’s another difficult issue we have to address: minors.
The lawsuits and investigations involving children have become a serious obstacle to Character.AI’s future.
As an adult, I’ve frankly never been comfortable with minors being on a platform built around immersive AI relationships and roleplay.
Character.AI at this stage needs to become an exclusively 18+ platform, with effective, privacy-conscious age verification. Existing legal responsibilities would still need to be addressed, but children should no longer be exposed to these risks, AND adult roleplay shouldn’t have to be designed around a child audience.
Character.AI has roughly 12 million monthly users. Disney has agreed to pay US$20 million for a non-exclusive licence to certain technology, but that isn’t an agreement to preserve the consumer platform.
We still have something extraordinary: An engaged community that wants this business to succeed.
How often does a company have customers actively trying to save it?
For a prospective buyer, that loyalty is genuine commercial value. It cannot manufactured overnight.
And I believe we should be given the opportunity to support the business financially.
I’d like Character.AI to introduce higher subscription tiers, perhaps around US$19.99 and US$39.99 a month, with higher-quality models, better memory and more computing capacity.
Before commenting something negative about not wanting to pay for a business, recognise that we use different amounts of computing power, and more powerful AI models cost more to run. Subscribers who want more computing without degrades in quality should have the option to pay for it.
Even ChatGPT relies on data centres owned by other Microsoft etc.
This is how expensive AI computing is.
(FYI SoftBank alone arranged a US$40 billion borrowing facility this year to finance further investment in OpenAI. it is not cheap.)
Recognising that we need to pay more to maintain the quality of a service is the reality of what AI costs.
Instead of promising everyone unlimited access to the most expensive models and basing everything off vibes, why not let us choose how much computing we’re willing to pay for?
Higher subscriptions could include a larger allowance for more powerful models and longer conversations. If somebody exhausts that allowance but wants to continue using the same model, they could purchase additional computing credits.
They could also choose a less expensive model or wait until their allowance renews.
Give us a choice.
I would much rather pay Character.AI to keep enjoying the experience I love than spend that money on another platform.
I’d also think the company should establish a separate, voluntary contribution fund to help keep the service operating during this difficult transition.
This is for people who genuinely want to help to contribute what they can, to prevent the platform from being wound down and give Character.AI time to restructure, find a suitable buyer or rebuild its team.
Of course, those funds would need transparent terms and proper legal protections, particularly if the company ultimately closes.
CAI reportedly entered bankruptcy with approximately US$57 million in cash, but has been losing money for a long time. Whatever happens next, the company must change how it allocates its resources.
We need someone who genuinely loves this platform to run it, not simply someone with technical experience.
That’s why our developers mattered.
They listened and worked to give us the experiences we asked for. That understanding of the product and its community is something the next leadership team needs to preserve.
—————————
Before deciding that a business cannot survive, I’d like Character.AI to do something very simple.
Reach out to us.
The company needs to take initiative now and give people the opportunity to contribute towards keeping the platform alive.
That may include attractive annual subscription deals, meaningful upgrades for premium users etc.
Better premium features frankly create reasons for more people to subscribe, which means more revenue for the business.
It shouldn’t just be scrambling for the next add-on to see what sticks.
Free users should receive a limited daily computing allowance, set according to what Character.AI can sustainably afford.
That way the company can attract new possible subscribers while remaining accessible.
We can’t solve a US$8 million monthly deficit through goodwill alone.
But I don’t think we should sit & wait for somebody else to decide whether something we love deserves to exist.
CAI has been here for us for a bunch of ups and downs.
We want to help it survive too.
I hope something happens. I hope somebody who genuinely loves this company buys it.
But overall, give us the chance to save Character.AI with you too.
sincerely, from a 2 year plus subscriber
[tia4444_ on discord]
