China’s Cyberspace Administration, alongside multiple partner agencies, has issued sweeping new rules that effectively kill AI companion products across the country’s biggest tech platforms. The “Interim Measures for the Administration of AI Anthropomorphic Interactive Services,” introduced on April 10, prohibit platforms from offering emotionally interactive AI services, including virtual companions and simulated intimate relationships, to anyone under 18.
The regulations take effect on July 15, but the country’s tech giants aren’t waiting around. ByteDance, Alibaba, Tencent, and NetEase have already started ripping out features.
What’s actually changing
ByteDance’s Doubao, which serves 345 million monthly active users, disabled its custom AI agents entirely. Users who had built up conversation histories with their AI companions now have read-only access to those chats. That access window closes on October 15.
The scope here is broader than just chatbots pretending to be boyfriends. The regulations target virtual partners, emotional relationship simulations, and any AI service designed to create emotional dependence among young users. Platforms must also implement emotional distress detection and crisis intervention measures. Users retain full control over their personal data under the new framework.
