Where things stand
Everything below comes from court reporting and Character.AI's own statements, listed under Sources. We update this page as the sale moves on.
Chapter 11 filing
Character Technologies, the company behind Character.AI, filed for Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware to sell the business. It cited the cost of building and running the service, along with lawsuits over chatbot safety.
Disney's opening bid
Disney agreed to be the stalking-horse bidder at $20 million. Its offer is a nonexclusive, perpetual license to some of Character.AI's intellectual property, not a purchase of the app, and reporting on it says user data is not included. A stalking-horse bid sets a floor, so other buyers can still outbid it.
During the sale
The app stays online
Character.AI says the platform keeps running with minimal disruption while the sale is under way, and that you can still export your data.
Late November – early December 2026
The sale is expected to close
If no buyer chooses to keep the service running, Character.AI says the platform will be wound down.
What isn't known yet
- Whether the winning buyer keeps Character.AI running, or only takes its technology.
- What happens to stored chats if a buyer other than Disney wins. State attorneys general have asked for privacy safeguards before any user data changes hands.
- How long the data export stays available if the platform is wound down.
We don't guess beyond the public record. Where something is uncertain, plan for the outcome that costs you least: keep your own copy.
How to save your chats and characters now
Character.AI's export covers your whole account, but it is slow to arrive, and Reverie's importer reads only the chats in it. This order loses the least.
- 01
Request your data export today
On the web: Profile → Profile Settings → Account → Manage Account & Data → Export data. In the app: Profile → settings → Export my data. Character.AI's help center says an export can take up to 3–4 weeks to prepare. The full export guide walks through every step and fixes common problems.
- 02
Download it as soon as the email arrives
The download link expires about 7 days after it is sent. Save the ZIP somewhere you back up, then unzip it: your conversations are in the JSON files inside.
- 03
Copy the characters you made
Don't count on the export for character definitions: Reverie's importer reads only the chats in it. Open each character you created on Character.AI and copy its name, greeting, description and definition into a document.
- 04
Note down the characters you love from other creators
Their public greeting and description, plus a few lines from your chats, are usually enough to recreate their voice later.
- 05
Only then think about deleting your account
Deletion is permanent. Wait until you have downloaded your export and checked that your conversations are in it.
Continuing your chats on Reverie
Reverie imports Character.AI conversations directly. Rebuild the character with the character importer or from scratch, open an empty chat with it, and upload the conversation file from your export: the messages arrive in order and you carry on from the last line.
The transcript carries over; alternate replies, pinned memories and images don't. The export and import guide lists exactly what moves. Reverie is free to start.
Choosing where to go next
If you are deciding where to take your characters, these pages compare the options. Reverie wrote them, so check other platforms' current terms for yourself.
- Character.AI alternatives: what to look for when you switch, and how Reverie compares.
- Character.AI vs Reverie: a feature-by-feature comparison with sources.
- Best AI roleplay chatbots: a wider look at roleplay platforms.