China Bans AI Companions for Minors as Platforms Preemptively Shut Down Features

New regulations prohibit virtual partners for users under eighteen as Beijing links digital intimacy to demographic decline and major tech firms dismantle products ahead of enforcement.

Regulations taking effect this week prohibit technology companies in China from offering artificial intelligence or virtual partners to minors, a move aimed at preventing the erosion of real-world relationships among young people [1]. The ban arrives as the country records its fourth consecutive year of population shrinkage and frames synthetic companionship as a variable in a broader demographic crisis [5]. While the rule targets underage users specifically, the compliance burden falls on platforms that have already begun dismantling the infrastructure supporting these services.

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