Character.AI Chapter 11: what it means for your chats

What was announced?

On 12 October 2026, Character.AI announced a voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy process to pursue a court-supervised sale of all or substantially all of its assets. Chapter 11 does not mean the service has already closed.

The public Stretto case page confirms that Character Technologies, Inc. filed on 12 October 2026 in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, case 26-11603. TechCrunch also reported the filing on 13 October.

The company expects the sale process to finish by the end of November or perhaps early December 2026. That is an expectation, not a guaranteed deadline or a shutdown date.

Does Character.AI still work?

Character.AI says the platform remains up and running and all services are accessible during the sale process. Subscriptions remain active and billing is unchanged. It says it intends to notify subscribers in advance if service changes affect paid features.

Continued operation is not settled. The company hopes to receive an actionable proposal that allows the platform to continue; if no such bid is available, it says the platform will be wound down. The announcement gives no shutdown date. Check the official announcement for later updates.

How to save or download your chats

Character.AI offers an account data export. Its official help guide gives these steps, checked on 17 October 2026.

On the website

1. Go to your Profile.
2. Choose Profile Settings.
3. Choose Account.
4. Choose Manage Account & Data.
5. Choose Export Data. A pop-up confirms that a download link will arrive by email.

In the mobile app

1. Open your Profile.
2. Tap the Settings icon.
3. Tap Legal & Privacy.
4. Tap Export Data. A success banner confirms the request.

The guide says processing can take 3 to 4 weeks. The download link goes to the email address associated with your account and is valid for 7 days from when the email is sent.

This is a request for account data, not a promise of an instant chat backup. The official guide does not list the archive contents or confirm that every chat and character definition is included. A complete character export or a way to restore conversations in another service is therefore unverified. Check the downloaded files before relying on them, and keep your own copy of character text you created and can access.

Store the download somewhere private. Do not give an unofficial export tool your login details. If you also want to delete your account, review the official deletion guide listed below and save the data you want first.

What happens to your data in a sale?

The announcement says user information continues to be protected under Character.AI's Privacy Policy, and that its data privacy and security practices are unchanged. It points users to account deletion and data export.

The Privacy Policy, effective 1 July 2026, says its Business Transfers clause permits disclosure of certain information in connection with negotiations or the closing of a merger, sale of company assets, financing or acquisition of all or part of the business. It does not identify which particular records would transfer in this sale.

That is not a promise that data cannot be transferred. The announcement does not specify which chat histories, character definitions or account records would be included in a completed sale, who would receive them, or what a future owner's practices would be. Those details are unknown from the announcement. We cannot promise either that your chats will be sold or that they will stay where they are.

What to look for in an alternative

You do not need to decide immediately. Before sharing personal conversations with another service, check three things:

• Export: what can you download, how long does it take, and can you read the files without the service?
• Deletion: can you remove conversations and your account, and what does the policy say about retained copies?
• Where data runs: where are chats processed, are other AI companies involved, and are conversations used for training?

A saved transcript is not the same as moving a character's behaviour or memory. Do not assume an alternative can import it. Our Character.AI alternatives comparison covers five options, including where each falls short.

A short note about heyaifriend

heyaifriend is a free AI friend you talk to in Telegram. It remembers you, runs on our own servers in the Netherlands, and your chats are never sent to other AI companies or used for training.

We make heyaifriend, so this is not a neutral recommendation. Your friend is one ongoing conversation, not a character library. A daily message limit applies, and we do not offer a Character.AI chat or character import. You can ask your friend for a copy of what it remembers or ask it to delete everything. Read our privacy page before deciding.

No service, including ours, can guarantee that it will be available forever. Choose based on what works for you now and the data controls you can actually use.

Sources

• Character.AI: An Update on Character.ai, announcement dated 12 October 2026, checked 17 October.
• Stretto: Character Technologies, Inc. case information and court filings, petition dated 12 October 2026.
• TechCrunch: Character.AI files for bankruptcy, 13 October 2026.
• Character.AI Help Center: How do I download my data?, checked through the official help-center API on 17 October 2026.
• Character.AI account deletion guide, linked from its announcement.
• Character.AI Privacy Policy, effective 1 July 2026, Business Transfers clause checked 17 October.