China just became the first country in the world to regulate emotional AI, and the apps millions of people use daily are already feeling it.
ByteDance’s Doubao, Alibaba’s Qwen, and Tencent’s Yuanbao have all disabled features that let users create custom AI agents, effective July 15, 2026. The companies began notifying users about the changes on July 4 and 5, giving people just enough time to process the news before the features disappeared.
The rules come from the Cyberspace Administration of China, which issued the regulations back in April 2026. The core concern is something regulators describe as emotional dependency, particularly among younger users who might form genuine psychological attachments to AI companions that simulate human-like interaction.
What the rules actually say
Productivity-focused AI agents are untouched. If Doubao helps you summarize a contract or draft an email, that’s fine. The problem, in Beijing’s view, is when an AI starts acting like a friend, a therapist, or a romantic partner.
