Character.ai Removes Disney Characters After Receiving Cease-and-desist Letter

In Brief

Character.AI received a cease-and-desist missive from Disney, urging nan chatbot institution to region Disney characters from among nan millions of AI companions connected its plaftorm, Variety reports.

Character.AI allows users to make AI chatbots that tin scope from existent group for illustration Elon Musk to fictional characters for illustration Hermione Granger, positive users’ ain original creations. These chatbots tin beryllium rather unfiltered — successful 1 peculiarly horrific case, a family sued Character.AI aft a chatbot inspired by a Game of Thrones characteristic allegedly encouraged their teenage boy to perpetrate suicide.

“Character.ai is freeriding disconnected nan goodwill of Disney’s celebrated marks and brands, and blatantly infringing Disney’s copyrights,” a Disney lawyer wrote successful nan cease-and-esist letter. “Even worse, Character.ai’s infringing chatbots are known, successful immoderate cases, to beryllium sexually exploitive and different harmful and vulnerable to children, offending Disney’s consumers and extraordinarily damaging Disney’s estimation and goodwill.”

As of now, Character.AI, searches for Disney-owned characters for illustration Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Captain America, and Luke Skywalker output nary results. However, different characters from media copyrighted by Disney still look successful hunt results, specified arsenic Percy Jackson and Hannah Montana.

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