ByteDance and Alibaba are shutting down their AI companion services in response to new regulations set to take effect in China on July 15. This decision follows the announcement that Tencent's Yuanbao has also discontinued its own AI agent tools.
ByteDance's Doubao will disable its custom AI persona function on July 15, stating that this move is part of necessary “product function adjustments.” The company plans to either delete all remaining user data or archive it securely by October 15. Similarly, Alibaba's Qwen will deactivate its human-like bots on July 10 and cease all related agent functions shortly thereafter.
Impact on Users
The discontinuation of these AI platforms will result in a notable decrease in personalization for users who had access to customized agents designed to perform various tasks utilizing unique language styles. The bots offered users potential roles such as personal assistants, tutors, or companions.
Regulatory Framework
The shutdowns are in line with the recently enacted “Interim Measures for the Administration of Humanized Interactive Services Based on Artificial Intelligence.” This legislation, proposed in April, aims to regulate AI that mimics human emotional traits and cognitive styles, as well as fosters prolonged emotional attachments.
Concerns over emotional dependency on lifelike AI have driven lawmakers to introduce these regulations. They highlighted risks pertaining to mental health in minors, data security vulnerabilities, public health hazards, and ethical dilemmas. Under these new laws, platforms are prohibited from generating content that could manipulate minors’ emotions or encourage them to favor AI companions over real human interactions. Additionally, they cannot utilize personal chat histories to enhance future AI models.
The recent announcements from ByteDance and Alibaba come just as Tencent's Yuanbao had disabled its own AI features, eliminating related user conversations in compliance with its data retention policies. The swift action by these companies highlights the growing influence of regulatory measures shaping the AI landscape in China.
