Industry changelog

2026-10-03 Kupid AI — Kupid AI no longer sells a monthly plan: Pro is $12.99 a week or $179 a year, Ultra $24.99 a week or $299 a year, and Lifetime $777 once. Our July record had $12, $29 and $49 a month. First seen on this date; the change happened some time after July 2. (kupid.ai/subscriptions)

2026-10-03 Kupid AI — Kupid AI's terms of service (revision date 10/08/2026) no longer mention the $3.99 a month data-retention fee we recorded in July. The line '$3.99/month to keep your data' is still in the site's text for its cancel screens, which sit behind login. (kupid.ai terms of service and pricing page code)

2026-10-03 HeraHaven — Pricing verified at the source: HeraHaven Pro $19.95 a month or $79.80 a year, unchanged since July. The prices are not on any public page; they were read from the price list in the site's own code. (herahaven.ai site code, terms and cancellation policy)

2026-10-03 DreamGF — DreamGF's membership policy has gained a clause since our July capture: accepting the special offer '+100 instant tokens and +100 tokens every month' means 'you will not be able to cancel your membership for the next 30 days'. The policy's effective date still reads 1 June 2023. Prices, the renewal at $25.99 a month and the $1.99 Maintenance Charge clause are unchanged. (dreamgf.ai membership policy and pricing pages, compared with our 2026-07-07 capture)

2026-10-03 DarLink — Pricing verified at the source: Essential $12.99, Advanced $27.99 and Ultimate $49.99 a month; yearly plans are one payment of $119.88, $227.88 or $395.88, a charge the plan page itself never shows. (darlink.ai/plan-selection, its plan data, terms and refund policy)

2026-10-03 Roger (ChatRoger) — Pricing verified at the source: Premium $14.99 a month or $89.99 a year, each with 1,000 credits a month. (chatroger.com/upgrade, terms and refund policy)

2026-10-02 Candy AI — Monthly plan now has an intro price: 'First month billed as $9.99', then 'renews monthly at $13.99', with 'Then $13.99/month' printed on the plan card. It still read $13.99 from the first month on 09-27. Yearly ($47.88) and 3-month ($26.97) unchanged and still renew at the same price and term. (candy.ai/subscriptions (US read, 2026-10-02; tracker snapshots 2026-09-25 and 2026-10-02; recheck 2026-09-27))

2026-10-02 Chai — Chai's company site now says its consumer business reached '$100M ARR in July 2026'. Every snapshot we took from July 6 to September 25 said '$70M/yr in revenue in 2026'; the new figure appeared between September 25 and October 2. Self-reported, with no outside figure behind it. (chai-research.com homepage, tracker snapshots 2026-09-25 and 2026-10-02, re-checked 2026-10-02)

2026-10-01 Kindroid — Lite ended. The subscription page (now dated Oct 1, 2026) dropped 'Free user features' and its 'Unlimited messages on Lite' line for a new section, 'New account preview and read-only accounts': new accounts get a one-time preview of 50 messages on the flagship model (15 in some regions), 5 selfies, 5,000 audio characters and up to 2 Kindroids; accounts that were already free get 50 final messages, with selfie and audio balances 'kept but locked'; after that the account is read-only. The preview never comes back: starting a trial ends it, and deleting the account doesn't reset it. A lapsed standard plan now means read-only even with Ultra or MAX active. Prices unchanged. By midday Pacific there was no update-log entry or announcement, and the FAQ still described free users. (kindroid.ai/v2/docs/subscriptions/, read 2026-09-27 and 2026-10-01) Obituary →

2026-09-28 Character.AI — Two new free chat styles, PipSqueak 3 ('noticeably smarter' than PipSqueak 2, per Character.AI) and ShortSqueak (short replies for casual chats), rolled out to everyone over a few days. New chats now start on PipSqueak 3; PipSqueak 2 and Rawr moved to a Legacy menu, and existing chats keep their style. The subscribe page's basic chat styles changed between our captures of 09-25 and 10-02. (blog.character.ai/new-styles-new-plan/ (2026-09-28); character.ai/subscribe tracker snapshots 2026-09-25 and 2026-10-02)

2026-09-26 Kindroid — FAQ rewrote its privacy answer (page now dated Sep 26, 2026). 'Are my chats safe and private?' used to say data is encrypted so that 'only you and the AI can see it' and that 'Kindroid staff and devs will only see encrypted data in our database'. It now says 'Access to our production systems is limited to a small number of engineers, and our support team can't see your chats. Like any AI app, our servers do need to process your messages to generate replies.' The only-you-and-the-AI claim is gone. (kindroid.ai/v2/docs/faqs/, read 2026-09-22 and 2026-09-27) Full record →

2026-09-25 Nomi — Pulled from Google Play: the listing (ai.nomi.twa) returns 404 in every locale; it was live on 09-22. Nomi's official account on r/NomiAI says Google's reviewers lost access to their test account and took the app down, and expects it back shortly. Installed apps keep working, but in-app credit purchases on Android stopped; the website works. A lookalike 'Nomi AI: Chat, Play, Connect' from another developer now tops Play search for 'nomi ai' (r/NomiAI post by u/cardine 2026-09-25 and replies 2026-09-26; Play listing checked 2026-09-22 (live) and 2026-09-27 (404)) Full record →

2026-09-23 Kindroid — Rooms left beta: shared chats with other people and their Kins, up to 10 people and 11 Kins per invite-only Room (the owner brings two Kins, every other member one). Subscribers can create and take part; free accounts can join only by invitation, as read-only viewers. (kindroid.ai/v2/docs/update-log/ (9/23 entry, read 2026-09-25))

2026-09-23 Industry — Meta announced Muse Charm at Connect: a pocket-sized device with an interactive, Tamagotchi-like avatar for talking to its Muse AI agent. Meta's own post calls it 'a delightful and fun device built for you to talk and interact with your Muse', with a real-time voice model; no price yet, 'more to share later this year', and Zuckerberg said it ships by the December holidays. The largest social company now sells an always-with-you AI character as hardware. (about.fb.com 'The Biggest News From Connect 2026' (2026-09-24); Mashable and MacRumors Connect coverage)

2026-09-22 CamSoda AI — Premium prices raised 2.5 to 3.3 times since our July 3 capture: one month is now $9.99 (was $2.99), three months $4.99 a month (was $1.99) and twelve months $2.49 a month (was $0.99), under the same '70% Off' banner; the 12-month plan's label went from '70% OFF' to '75% OFF'. The terms (last modified November 10, 2025) still say the subscription renews at US$19.95 a month, and the popup's plan and account steps still show no renewal price. Image generation costs 2 tokens; a 5-second video is 12. (camsoda.ai paywall modal, generator and terms, rendered 2026-09-22; compared with our 2026-07-03 capture) Full record →

2026-09-22 Candy AI — Pricing verified at the source: the ladder is unchanged ($13.99 / $26.97 a quarter / $47.88 a year, each renewing at the same price). A free account gets 5 messages in total, one custom character and one image. New details: a subscription refund is refused once more than 20 tokens are used, even inside the 24-hour window; a help center article (August 25) says cancelling keeps your tokens while the terms say they expire; and two Google Play apps named 'Candy AI' come from a developer whose name uses Cyrillic look-alike letters, not from EverAI, which has no app. (candy.ai subscriptions page (US), terms of service, help center, App Store and Google Play searches, read 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 Candy AI — Privacy answer rewritten (first seen 09-22; the Internet Archive still shows the old one on 09-16), and Terms revised September 22. The homepage FAQ 'Is chatting with an AI Girlfriend private and secure?' used to say Candy 'uses end-to-end encryption to keep all AI GF conversations safe and confidential' and that 'Your data is never shared or sold'; it now says Candy uses 'industry-standard security measures, including encrypting data in transit using TLS 1.2+ protocols' and points to the Privacy Notice. The end-to-end claim and the never-sold line are gone, and so are the lines about controlling your chat history and two-factor authentication. The Terms of Service revision date moved August 17 → September 22, 2026, adding one clause: selected users may be offered 'rebates in bonus tokens equal to a percentage of tokens spent, subject to specified minimum spending thresholds', i.e. a spend-more loyalty rebate. (candy.ai homepage FAQ + candy.ai/terms-of-service, tracker snapshots 2026-09-11 and 2026-09-22 (US vantage), Internet Archive 2026-09-16 and 2026-09-24, re-checked 2026-09-27) Full record →

2026-09-22 OurDream AI — Pricing verified at the source: a second plan, Deluxe, at $59.99 a month or $359.88 a year (5,000 coins a month, premium chat models, 3x memory), above Premium at $19.99 / $119.88. OurDream's help center says there are no free coins, each message costs a coin without a subscription and images and video need a plan, so our 'permanent free tier' label was wrong and is corrected; its blog describes a one-time 55-coin trial. Generated media is blurred when a subscription ends. (ourdream.ai upgrade page, help center and refund policy, read 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 Secrets AI — Pricing verified at the source: Free (20 messages a day, tied to the device), Premium $19.99 a month or $109.99 a year with 8,000 Moments, Ultimate $39.99 or $319.99 with 15,000 Moments; 3- and 6-month plans exist but are not on the store page. Crossed-out prices are fixed reference numbers, so the '77% OFF' yearly label is really about 54%. Monthly subscribers on the retired Lite ($5.99) and Plus ($9.99) plans are being moved to Premium at $19.99 on renewal. (secrets.ai store and site code, wiki.secrets.ai, terms and refund policy, read 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 Janitor AI — Search and browsing are back: the 'Search temporarily unavailable' notice from 09-11 is gone and the rendered homepage again shows the 'Be anyone. Build anything.' banner ('Join 15M+ users crafting living stories'), Popular and Creators rails, and Explore All. The outage lasted at most eleven days between our renders. (tracker browser renders 2026-09-11 → 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 CrushOn AI — Pricing verified at the source: five paid tiers, not two. Standard $5.99 a month ($58.88 a year), Premium $14.99 ($94.88), Luxe $39.99 ($299.99), Elite $89.99 ($799.99), Imperial $199.99 ($1,799.99); Deluxe is marked Retired. The yearly 'Ultimate Bundles' (plan plus Pro Chat Package) cost exactly the two parts added together. The apps ship under other names: 'Crushmash: Crush On AI Chat' on iOS and 'JollyChatter' on Google Play. (crushon.ai pricing page (monthly, annual and Chat Package tabs), FAQ, terms, US App Store and Google Play listings, read 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 CrushOn AI — Terms revised: creators can now sell 'Paid Content' (images, GIFs, videos) that users unlock with Diamonds, while the site's 2257 statement (Feb 8, 2025) still says 'The content created from this website contains only text generated based on AI and does not contain images or videos'. The same revision softened refunds and chargebacks: fees stay non-refundable 'except as expressly provided in this Refund Policy or required by applicable law', and 'a genuine payment dispute alone does not justify an account-wide restriction', where the July 2025 terms let CrushOn refuse every card and online account tied to a chargeback. The terms are dated September 22, 2026; they were not live yet when we read the page late that day, and we first saw them on September 27. (crushon.ai/terms-of-service and crushon.ai/2257, read 2026-09-22 (old) and 2026-09-27 (new); Internet Archive 2025-08-02 and 2026-09-20) Full record →

2026-09-22 SoulGen — SoulOmni 1.0 and 1.0 Flash are gone from the video price list eleven days after the 09-11 restructure renamed them. Image/Text to Video now offers SoulGen 2.0 (10 credits per 5 s), SoulGen 3.0 (15), SoulOmni 2.0 (18 at 720p, 30 at 1080p) and SoulOmni 2.0 Turbo (25/40). The cheapest clip with a stated 1080p resolution went from 20 credits (1.0 Flash) to 30 (SoulOmni 2.0), +50%. Reference to Video is now SoulOmni 2.0 and 2.0 Turbo only; the SoulGen 3.0 and SoulOmni 1.0 options there were removed. (soulgen.ai/pricing, tracker snapshots 2026-09-11 → 2026-09-22, verified live 2026-09-22 (US vantage))

2026-09-22 PolyBuzz — Pricing verified at the source: the monthly ladder is unchanged ($9.90 / $19.90 / $29.90), with yearly plans at $99 / $199 / $299 on the web and a $4.99 weekly Standard plan on the App Store. Logged-out US visitors are split between page versions: in 3 of 18 loads the monthly Premium plan was replaced by a weekly one at $9.90 for the first week, renewing at $14.90 a week per the page data (no renewal price on the card). Crossed-out 'was' prices are computed from the weekly price, not past prices. Terms: no refunds even after cancelling. (polybuzz.ai membership page (18 US loads) + page data, US App Store, Terms of Use (May 18, 2026), read 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 Talkie — Pricing verified at the source for the first time. Talkie+ has two tiers, not one: Standard at $9.99 a month and Pro at $24.99 (the subscription FAQ still calls Pro 'coming soon'). Standard yearly is $49.99 for the first year and renews at $95.99. The website now sells quarterly and yearly plans by card, while the terms (April 2025) still say monthly-only through app stores. There is no US App Store app named Talkie: the old 'Talkie: Soulful AI' listing is gone, and US iPhone users are sent to 'Talkie Lab - AI Playground' from the same seller, which carries Talkie's purchases. Google Play US still lists 'Talkie: Creative AI Community'. (talkie-ai.com subscribe popup + subscription API, Talkie FAQ and terms, US App Store and Google Play listings, all read 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 GoLove AI — Pricing verified at the source: there is no pricing page, but a public payment landing page lists Pro at $19.99 a month, $47.97 for three months and $119.88 a year (50 Stars a month), and the plan list the site loads adds Ultra at $59.99 a month or $359.99 a year (250 Stars) and a $139.99 Lifetime Pro. Terms: refunds within 24 hours and not after 20 Stars are used; the terms mention a free usage limit ('e.g., 10 messages') while the homepage calls free chat unlimited. (goloveai.com/land/payment, the site's public plan list, homepage and terms, read 2026-09-22 (US vantage))

2026-09-22 GoLove AI — The 'Create character from photos: Upload 5 photos. AI does the rest.' block (Only Ultra) is back on the homepage, eleven days after we logged it gone. The feature is still live; it had been rotated out of the homepage, not dropped. (goloveai.com homepage, tracker snapshots 2026-09-11 → 2026-09-22, verified live 2026-09-22 (US vantage))

2026-09-22 Promptchan — Pricing verified at the source and added to the tracker: Plus $14.99 a month (100 Gems), Premium $23.99 (400) and Pro $33.99 (800 plus unlimited basic images); video, custom characters, voice calls and upscaling are Pro only. Operated by VisionAI Labs Limited, Dublin. promptchan.ai no longer resolves; the product lives at promptchan.com. The pricing page claims iOS and Android apps, but neither US store lists one. (promptchan.com upgrade page, API docs, terms and refund policy, App Store and Google Play searches, read 2026-09-22)

2026-09-11 SpicyChat — Web app jumped from version 2.44.0 (08-21) to 4.1.2 and the logged-out shell is rebuilt: the old sidebar (My Personas, Lorebooks, Groups, Voices, Leaderboard) is replaced by a tag browser with live character counts — Male 208,570, FemalePOV 111,790, Female 100,700, Romantic 71,845, LGBTQ+ 33,510 — plus a 'Get Premium' button and a language switcher. Pricing not re-verified (behind login). (rendered homepage, tracker browser snapshots 2026-08-21 → 2026-09-11)

2026-09-11 FantasyGF — 'Feed' added to the top nav; the character roster switched from archetype blurbs ('A delicate Lesbian…', 'An Innocent character…') to scenario bios (step-sister, new boss, streamer roommate, best friend's mother), each badged New. (fantasygf.ai homepage, tracker snapshots 2026-08-21 → 2026-09-11)

2026-09-11 OurDream AI — Footer legal identity simplified to 'Dream Studio USA, Inc.' — the Cyprus entity TEKTOPIA LTD (HE 473775) listed alongside it on 08-21 is gone from the page. Explore filters add 'Cheating/NTR' and 'Dark Themes' categories; the 'Candy AI vs OurDream' comparison link was removed from the homepage. Pricing copy re-read unchanged: $19.99/mo or $119.88/yr, 1,000 dreamcoins a month. (ourdream.ai homepage, tracker snapshots 2026-08-21 → 2026-09-11, verified live 2026-09-11)

2026-09-11 Lovescape — Homepage title repositioned from 'AI Porn Generator | Unfiltered AI Porn Images & Videos' to 'AI Porn Generator for Images, Videos, Stories & Chat' — Stories added as a headline product line next to chat. (lovescape.com homepage title, tracker snapshots 2026-08-21 → 2026-09-11)

2026-09-11 Character.AI — The logged-out /subscribe page now opens on the yearly plan: page title 'Unlock c.ai+ Annual – Exclusive Savings & Premium Features', $119.88 struck through to $94.99. The $9.99 monthly plan is still sold, behind the page's Monthly/Yearly toggle. Prices unchanged. (character.ai/subscribe, tracker snapshots 2026-08-21 → 2026-09-11 (US curl))

2026-09-11 Janitor AI — Search and character browsing switched off: the rendered homepage shows 'Search temporarily unavailable — Search and browsing are temporarily disabled while we fix server issues. Chats and direct links to character pages still work.' Third-party status trackers logged a spike of user outage reports the same day. Second capacity incident in six weeks, after the 08-03 waiting-room queue. (tracker browser render 2026-09-11; uptimerobot / statusgator outage reports 2026-09-11 (secondary))

2026-09-11 SoulGen — Video credit table restructured with a new top tier. Image/Text to Video now lists SoulOmni 2.0 Turbo at 25 credits per 5-second clip (720p) and 40 (1080p) and SoulOmni 2.0 at 18/30; the old SoulOmni becomes 'SoulOmni 1.0' (18/24) and Flash becomes '1.0 Flash' (15/20). SoulGen 3.0 stays at 15 credits/5 s for image-to-video but is 20 credits/5 s under the new Reference to Video section, where the upload surcharge is now +20 to +40 credits by tier (was a flat +20/+26). On the 100-credit monthly allowance, one 1080p Turbo clip is 40% of the month. Subscription prices render client-side and were not re-verified. (soulgen.ai/pricing, tracker snapshots 2026-08-21 → 2026-09-11 (US vantage))

2026-09-11 Animates — Added to the tracker as the designated successor to Grok Companions: xAI's in-app notice sends Grok users here from September 1, 2026. Animation Inc has had the app on the App Store since version 1.0 on February 7, 2026 (version 1.0.19 shipped 2026-09-10); Ani and Valentine are live in it and fan trackers report Mika arriving 09-10 (secondary). Separate accounts, no Grok data transfer. animates.ai is a one-line landing page behind Cloudflare ('Your life companions'); pricing is visible only in the store listings. (App Store listing id6758621319 + Google Play inc.animation.animate, 2026-09-11; animates.ai rendered 2026-09-11; companionsfan.cz (secondary))

2026-09-10 Industry — California enacted Adam's Law (SB 1119, Statutes 2026 ch. 190), named after Adam Raine and billed by its authors as the first state framework for companion chatbots and children. An operator must either determine each user's age (using the operating-system age signal from California's Digital Age Assurance Act) or give every user the child protections; that section has no later start date, so it applies when the law takes effect on January 1, 2027. Apps that bar under-18s must publish how they check age. Apps that admit them owe, from July 1, 2027, risk assessments before each new or substantially modified chatbot, parent-only default settings (no notifications, usage time limits, limits on persistent memory), crisis referrals with parent notice, and, per the authors, liability for failing to take reasonable measures against outputs including sexually explicit material and romantic roleplay. Penalties run up to $5,000 per affected child for each negligent violation and $15,000 for each intentional one, plus a private action for actual harm. Independent child-safety audits start by 2029; operators under $500 million in revenue are exempt from them until 2032. For 18+ companion apps the practical change is age assurance: check age, or treat everyone as a child. (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov SB 1119 (chaptered 2026-09-10, ch. 190); Sen. Steve Padilla press release 2026-09-10) Full record →

2026-09-09 Kindroid — Polaris, the new flagship LLM after Ember, released to all subscription tiers with expanded context (more room for recent chat, long-term and cascaded memory). Equinox (V7) and Prism (V7.5) retire October 1; Lyric and Lucid (V8) retire December 1; Reverie stays. Ember kept as the default for now because of launch load. (Kindroid team announcement on r/KindroidAI, 2026-09-09: https://www.reddit.com/r/KindroidAI/comments/1wbxyvi/)

2026-09-08 SpicyChat — Raised every paid plan: Get a Taste $5 to $5.95, True Supporter $14.95 to $19.95 (+33%), I'm All In $24.95 to $29.95 a month; yearly $50 / $149.95 / $249.95 (SpicyChat's FAQ figures) became $60 / $199.95 / $299.95. GBP prices are £4.95 / £16.95 / £25.95 a month and £50 / £169.95 / £259.95 a year. Existing recurring subscribers keep their old price while the subscription stays active and on the same plan. Verified 2026-09-22 and 2026-09-27. (docs.spicychat.ai/september-2026-pricing-update-faq and spicychat.ai/subscribe, checked 2026-09-22) Full record →

2026-09-03 Character.AI — New 'lite' plan between Free and c.ai+: $4.99 a month or $2.49 a week in the US (no yearly option), with fewer ads (no banners), a daily allowance of premium chat styles, 30 memory pins and, chat customization. A staged rollout announced only on 09-28: first user sightings 09-03 at regional prices, help-center FAQ created 09-04, US App Store listing by 09-07; we first saw it on the logged-out web page on 09-22. c.ai+ prices unchanged. (character.ai/subscribe, support.character.ai (About (c.ai) lite; (c.ai) lite FAQ), App Store id1671705818 and its Internet Archive copies of 2026-08-16 and 2026-09-07, r/CharacterAI posts from 2026-09-03, blog.character.ai launch post 2026-09-28; checked 2026-09-22, 2026-09-27 and 2026-10-02) Full record →

2026-09-01 Grok Companions (Ani) — Companions removed: an in-app notice on the Companions screen set September 1, 2026 as the date the 3D animated Companions (Ani, Valentine, Mika, Rudi) leave the Grok app and directed users to Animates, a separate app by Animation Inc — the studio that built Grok's avatars — as the characters' 'new home'. The characters' X accounts had already moved from the xAI organisation to Animates on 08-17. Animates is a different company with its own accounts and subscriptions (Whisper $7.99/mo, Heartbeat $19.99/mo, Presence $39.99/mo per its App Store listing) and no data transfer from Grok. Removal landed account by account. App flipped from zombie to dead; obituary updated; Animates added to the tracker. (in-app notice as posted by @mark_k 2026-08-29 (status 2093776551833661689) and @midxnt 2026-08-29 (2093716431687098794); @blankspeaker on the X-org move 2026-08-17 (2089451703158616540); App Store listing id6758621319 (Animates – life companions, Animation Inc, 18+)) Obituary →

2026-09-01 Industry — Grok Companions are gone from the Grok app: xAI's in-app notice set September 1 as the removal date for the 3D animated companions (Ani, Valentine, Mika, Rudi), 39 days after calling the mode 'an experiment'. The characters were re-homed by the studio that built the avatars, Animation Inc, in its own 18+ app Animates ($7.99–$39.99/mo) — a different company, separate accounts, no data transfer. The most visible mainstream companion product of the past year ended as a hand-off to a third party. Obituary: /graveyard/grok-companions/. (in-app notice as posted on X by @mark_k and @midxnt 2026-08-29; App Store listing id6758621319) Obituary →

2026-08-28 Chai — Launched a separate web product at chai-ai.com, which the founder calls experimental: web-only plans (a 24-hour trial, then $159.99 a year, or $9.99 a week, plus a MAX add-on at $90 a month), billed apart from app subscriptions and with separate accounts (r/ChaiApp founder post 2026-08-28; chai-ai.com pricing and FAQ read 2026-09-27)

2026-08-23 Kindroid — V2 milestone post: conversion to paid among brand-new users up 25% since V2 became the default; every subscriber gifted 25 paid selfie credits; custom message colours, persona-at-creation, editable first greeting, avatar picker for selfies, large-display support, a performance pass, and Repetition Guard switched to opt-in. (Kindroid team announcement on r/KindroidAI, 2026-08-23: https://www.reddit.com/r/KindroidAI/comments/1vwogiw/)

2026-08-21 Swipey AI — Added a 'Complaint Policy' page (swipey.ai/complaint-policy) and linked it from the homepage footer; not present in the 08-03 snapshot. (swipey.ai homepage, tracker snapshots 2026-08-03 → 2026-08-21; page returns 200 on 2026-08-21)

2026-08-21 Janitor AI — Capacity queue lifted: the 'JanitorAI - Waiting Room' shell that fronted the site in our 2026-08-03 render ('JANITOR QUEUE IS ACTIVATED', estimated wait, 40-second auto-refresh) is gone — the 08-21 render loads straight into 'janitor - Build, share, and explore'. Curl still gets the Cloudflare block; rendered access is back to normal. (tracker browser snapshots 2026-08-03 → 2026-08-21; re-rendered 2026-08-21)

2026-08-21 SoulGen — Video credit pricing now lists a SoulGen 3.0 tier at 15 credits per 5-second clip (audio off; +2 credits with audio), above SoulGen 2.0 at 10 credits/5s — a 50% credit premium for the newer model. SoulOmni (audio included) is 18 credits/5s at 720p and 24 at 1080p. Subscription prices are rendered client-side and were not re-verified in this pass. (soulgen.ai/pricing, tracker snapshots 2026-08-03 → 2026-08-21, verified live 2026-08-21)

2026-08-21 GoLove AI — Homepage repositioned around video: the lead section is now 'Explore Feed — hot videos with AI girls and endless content', followed by 'Create character from photos — upload 5 photos, AI does the rest' (marked Only Ultra), 'Edit your videos with AI — transform any video into AI-powered scenes', and 'Next-gen video prompts'. The Scenarios (up to 10 characters) and Calls pitches that led the page on 08-03 moved down; 'Join Free' plus a -70% new-user bonus banner remain. (golove.ai homepage, tracker snapshots 2026-08-03 → 2026-08-21, verified live 2026-08-21)

2026-08-18 Kindroid — Announced the end of the unlimited free tier: 'Lite' retires October 1, 2026. New users get a bounded preview instead — 50 flagship-quality interactions (15 in regions 'with substantially higher account abuse'), two Kin slots, 5,000 audio characters, up to five selfies — then the existing three-day trial, then subscribe or the account goes read-only (Kins, chats, memories and media preserved, no new generation). Existing Lite users get 50 final interactions on October 1; daily rewards will require a trial or subscription. Reason given: 'an indefinite lower-quality free tier is neither sustainable nor representative of the product', and ads are 'not a realistic or economically aligned way' to fund it. Same post: V2 became the default interface, V1 retires October 1. Paid plans and prices unchanged. (Kindroid team announcement on r/KindroidAI, 2026-08-18: https://www.reddit.com/r/KindroidAI/comments/1vry0pn/) Obituary →

2026-08-18 Industry — Kindroid announced the end of its unlimited free tier: 'Lite' retires October 1, 2026, replaced by a 50-interaction preview after which unsubscribed accounts go read-only (content preserved, no new messages). Stated reason: an indefinite free tier is 'neither sustainable nor representative of the product' and ads are not an economically aligned way to fund it. Third major companion to shrink free access this year after Character.AI (ads, paid regens) and Replika (free tier 'may be denied at Replika's discretion'). (Kindroid team announcement on r/KindroidAI 2026-08-18 (reddit.com/r/KindroidAI/comments/1vry0pn/)) Obituary →

2026-08-17 Candy AI — Terms of Service revised (revision date moved July 30 → August 17, 2026): new backup-payment-method clause — any payment method you add or pay with becomes the default for future renewals, and if a renewal charge to the default method fails, EverAI may charge a designated backup method 'for the same amount and on the same terms'; also now states 'By subscribing, you authorize EverAI to charge your payment method unless you cancel autorenewal'. Subscription ladder unchanged on the US-served page ($13.99 / $8.99 / $3.99 per month; weekly $5.60 and bi-weekly $9.79 plans still listed). (candy.ai/terms-of-service 'Date of Revision: August 17, 2026' + candy.ai/subscriptions, both re-checked 2026-08-21)

2026-08-11 Industry — miHoYo (Genshin Impact) announced the shutdown of BSide: Olivia Lin, its free AI virtual-girlfriend desktop app, 29 days into Steam Early Access (launched 2026-07-13): offline build 2026-08-27, Steam delisting and server shutdown 2026-08-31 15:00 Shanghai time, reason given only as 'in accordance with our product roadmap and future plans'. The biggest game studio to enter the companion category so far lasted seven weeks in it. Obituary: /graveyard/bside-olivia-lin/. (miHoYo end-of-service notice on Steam 2026-08-11; Inven Global 2026-08-11; AUTOMATON WEST 2026-08-11) Obituary →

2026-08-03 SpicyChat — Shipped 'Lorebooks' — reusable world-info/lore entries for roleplay — as a new nav section with a 'New' badge; web version 2.41.2 (rendered homepage, tracker snapshot 2026-08-03)

2026-08-03 HeraHaven — 'Videos' tab added to the main app navigation, visible logged-out — AI video generation surfaced as a first-class feature (the homepage title had advertised videos since late July) (tracker homepage snapshots 2026-07-27 → 2026-08-03)

2026-08-03 Nomi — Retitled the homepage from the broken-looking 'Index - Nomi.ai' to 'AI Companion With Memory - Nomi.ai' — memory is now the headline positioning (tracker homepage snapshots 2026-07-27 → 2026-08-03)

2026-08-03 Lovescape — Homepage added explicit 'AI Roleplay Porn' and 'Weird Stuff' category landers — leaning into porn-keyword SEO most competitors avoid (tracker homepage snapshot 2026-08-03)

2026-08-03 Janitor AI — Site now fronted by a capacity queue: 'JANITOR QUEUE IS ACTIVATED', estimated wait time, 40-second auto-refresh — third access-control regime since the 2026-07-16 lockdown (rendered homepage, tracker snapshot 2026-08-03)

2026-08-03 Replika — Subscription ladder is now four tiers — Free Use, Pro, Ultra, Platinum (real-time video recognition, Training Mode, 'Read Replika's Mind', selfie videos) — with prices published only in-app; the help center also notes free access 'may be denied at Replika's discretion' (help.replika.com 'Choosing a Subscription', checked 2026-08-03)

2026-08-03 Replika — Removed the 'Elisabeth and Emma' grief testimonial — a mother describing using Replika to recapture conversations with her late daughter — from the homepage; live on 2026-07-27, gone by 2026-08-03 (tracker homepage snapshots 2026-07-27 → 2026-08-03)

2026-08-03 Talkie — 'Image Create' promoted onto the homepage — image generation is now a top-level feature surface (tracker homepage snapshots 2026-07-27 → 2026-08-03)

2026-07-30 Chai — Back on the Apple App Store: the founder posted 'CHAI: Back on Apple!' and version 2.182 is dated Jul 30. Same listing id1544750895, seller and bundle, ratings carried over; the description lost its character-creation paragraph. Store listings are now the only public price source; chai-research.com carries no consumer pricing, FAQ or terms pages. (r/ChaiApp founder post 2026-07-30; App Store listing id1544750895 and its Internet Archive captures of 2026-08-08; chai-research.com checked 2026-09-22) Full record →

2026-07-27 CamSoda AI — Homepage adds the disclaimer “Camsoda AI is a separate AI product by Camsoda” — first explicit on-site separation of the AI product from the cam platform. (camsoda.ai homepage (tracker snapshots 2026-07-23 vs 2026-07-27))

2026-07-27 OurDream AI — Site footer now names the operating entities: Dream Studio USA, Inc. (USA) and TEKTOPIA LTD, HE 473775 (Cyprus). (ourdream.ai footer (tracker snapshot 2026-07-27))

2026-07-27 OurDream AI — Multilingual UI shipped: a Language control appears in the site menu, first seen in our 07-27 snapshot and absent from 07-23. Page source carries 24 locale codes (da, de, en, es, fi, fr, he, id, it, ja, ko, nl, no, pl, pt, ru, sv, th, tr, uk, vi, zh, zh-CN, zh-TW). Localization is client-side only: no hreflang tags, no per-language URLs, and localized paths such as /de and /ja return the same generic SPA shell as a nonsense path, with English title and meta description. The translations exist for users but are invisible to search engines. (tracker snapshots 2026-07-23 vs 2026-07-27; live fetch + soft-404 control test from clean US vantage 2026-08-06)

2026-07-27 Swipey AI — Homepage switched from an empty SPA shell to server-rendered marketing copy with an FAQ — claims a permanent free tier (character creation, text chat, basic interactions) and “no content filters”; Premium unlocks unlimited messaging, voice calls, NSFW image generation and a ten-level progression system. (swipey.ai homepage (tracker snapshots 2026-07-23 vs 2026-07-27))

2026-07-24 Grok Companions (Ani) — Retirement announced: Grok (xAI's official @grok account) stated the dedicated 3D Companions mode — Ani, Valentine, Mika, Rudi — 'was an experiment' and 'is retiring soon to focus fully on core Grok: stronger memory, deeper/reliable chats, and better long-term experience'; follow-up replies 07-28→08-01 add the reason ('heavy third-party tech with high compute costs and inconsistent results') and that 'no exact public timeline' exists beyond 'soon'. What goes: the 3D avatars, the companion tab, outfits and the real-time voice layer. What stays: the personalities (prompt the name in regular chat or voice) and chat history. Third-party reports through mid-August describe the avatars disappearing account by account. App flipped to death watch (zombie) and given a graveyard plot. (@grok replies on X, 2026-07-28 (status 2082176394109300843), 07-29 (2082475567081824498), 07-30 (2082882593045856659), 07-31 (2083010353009500399), 08-01 (2083592210432360772); first statement quoted by @karatademada 2026-07-24 10:48 (status 2080590872966496356); rollout reports: aicompanionguides.com 2026-08-14 (secondary)) Obituary →

2026-07-23 HeraHaven — Launched image-to-video generation: homepage retitled from 'Chat & Pictures' to 'Chat, Pictures & Videos' and now markets turning AI girlfriend pictures into videos (new FAQ: 'Can I turn her pictures into videos'). (herahaven.ai homepage (tracker snapshots 2026-07-16 vs 2026-07-23; verified by direct fetch 2026-07-23))

2026-07-23 JOI — Rolled out a 'Celebrity' companion category on the homepage featuring real adult performers — Amouranth, Alexis Fawx, Joanna Angel, Joslyn James — listed alongside its 'Joi Original' personas. (joi.com homepage (tracker snapshots 2026-07-16 vs 2026-07-23; names verified by direct fetch 2026-07-23))

2026-07-21 Janitor AI — A week-long changelog cluster (7/14–7/21): Creator Verification applications reopened, the short-response model went to general access, JanitorLLM repetition improvements landed, the custom prompt limit rose to 500K characters, and Janitor+ subscribers got GIFs/stickers in comments. (janitorai.com/news (dated entries 2026-07-14 through 2026-07-21))

2026-07-20 Kindroid — Shipped Voice V3 for voice calls (emotive delivery: laughs, whispers, sighs), added a faster 'V3 Fast' model for text chat and voice notes, and removed the 3,000-character reply limit. V3 billing unchanged at 1.5x character count. (kindroid.ai/docs/article/update-log/ (7/20/2026 entry))

2026-07-17 Industry — San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu sent cease-and-desist letters to Apple and Google naming 13 AI 'nudify'/face-swap apps (8 on the App Store, 5 on Google Play), giving 28 days to remove them and cut developer ties. Apple confirmed it removed 3 and is terminating developer accounts; Google said the 5 named were already deleted. (TechCrunch 2026-07-17; MacRumors 2026-07-17 (removal confirmations))

2026-07-16 Industry — ByteDance's Doubao and Alibaba's Qwen shut down personalized AI companion/agent features entirely rather than redesign them for compliance with China's new anthropomorphic-AI rules. Doubao made agent configs and chat histories read-only until 2026-10-15, after which the data becomes unrecoverable. (AFP wire (via TechXplore/Yahoo News) 2026-07-15/16; CNN Business 2026-07-23) Obituary →

2026-07-15 Industry — China's 'Interim Measures for the Administration of Anthropomorphic AI Interaction Services' (CAC plus four other agencies) took effect: a total ban on virtual romantic partners/relatives for minors, and requirements that adult-facing services detect emotional distress, intervene in crises, and avoid cultivating emotional dependency. (Xinhua (english.news.cn) 2026-07-15; CNN Business 2026-07-23) Obituary →

2026-07-14 Secrets AI — v7.0.0 launched 'V2 Companions' — a next-generation companion roster (iridescent V2 badge, already fronting the homepage) whose images generate exclusively in the new Advanced mode; Advanced mode simultaneously opened to every companion including custom characters. Caps a two-week image-stack overhaul: v6.11.0 (Jul 8) shipped a brand-new Advanced image model with 'much stronger NSFW generation' at 1.5K/2K resolutions. (wiki.secrets.ai/extra/changelog)

2026-07-14 Industry — Hawaii's SB 3001 became Act 248, signed by Governor Green: operators of AI companions must give users certain disclosures, have response protocols for prompts about suicidal ideation or self-harm, and report every year to the Behavioral Health Administration of the state Department of Health. The bill's sponsors describe it as requiring AI companions to identify themselves as non-human and connecting young people in crisis with trained professionals. (Office of the Governor news release, July 14, 2026 (governor.hawaii.gov))

2026-07-09 Character.AI — Launched '(c.ai) series' — original short-form vertical microdramas produced by an in-house studio, with interactive chat with the shows' characters for users 18+. (blog.character.ai (2026-07-09); TechCrunch 2026-07-09)

2026-07-09 Kindroid — Opened public beta of 'V2', a full app interface redesign (customizable shortcuts, avatar slots, AI tagging), gated behind a beta password in settings. (kindroid.ai/docs/article/update-log/ (7/9/2026 entry))

2026-07-08 Chai — Removed from the Apple App Store in several regions, the US included: the founder confirmed on r/ChaiApp that 'CHAI has been temporarily removed from certain regions in Apple App Store'. No reason made public; the founder tied it to App Store compliance and switched off the Persona feature. Chai's paid press release of 07-12 said the app was in Apple review. Google Play stayed live. (r/ChaiApp founder posts 2026-07-08 to 2026-08-05; PR Newswire release 2026-07-12 (republished by Yahoo Finance as a paid press release); Internet Archive 404 of the US listing 2026-07-30) Full record →

2026-07-08 Grok Companions (Ani) — Platform upgraded to Grok 4.5, xAI's new flagship model (announced 2026-07-08; Musk pitches it as 'Opus-class, but much faster'). grok.com dropped its Beta badge and added a 'Try Free' CTA; companion access itself unchanged — still early access for SuperGrok and X Premium+ subscribers. (x.ai/news/grok-4-5)

2026-07-07 GirlfriendGPT — Terms receipt (TOU modified 2026-06-18): the free tier allows 2–3 characters and 10–20 messages in total, after which chat stops; paid tiers carry 5,000–20,000 message credits/mo that reset monthly with no carryover. Default refund policy: none on paid subscriptions, case-by-case exceptions only. (gptgirlfriend.online/legal/terms)

2026-07-07 GirlfriendGPT — Pricing per their public FAQ: Basic $5/mo, Premium $10/mo, Deluxe $35/mo — replaces our stale $15/$35/$50 secondary-source figures. The /subscribe paywall itself is login-walled; a 'Championship FEVER Sale — up to 60% off' banner is running site-wide. (gptgirlfriend.online homepage FAQ (JSON-LD), 2026-07-07)

2026-07-07 GirlfriendGPT — Operator confirmed: NextDay AI Incorporated (Montreal, Canada) with Delaware and Cyprus subsidiaries, named in footer, TOU and 2257 page. Billing via CCBill and TrustPay. Maintains a public product changelog (Beamer) and a bug bounty page — above-average transparency for the vertical. (site footer + legal/terms + legal/usc-2257-exemption)

2026-07-07 DreamGF — Membership policy receipt: a discretionary $1.99/mo 'Maintenance Charge' can be applied 'at any time' to accounts of users who previously purchased, to 'keep user accounts active'; the stated alternative is deleting your account and data. Refunds are voided by any feature use; vouchers discount the first period only. (dreamgf.ai/membership-policy)

2026-07-07 DreamGF — Checkout (/plans) vs pricing policy (/pricing) disagree: checkout advertises 150 tokens/mo with premium, the pricing policy says 100; the pricing policy also has its Monthly and 3-Month plan labels swapped (standing since at least 07-06), and the checkout's 'limited time offer' countdown sat at 0:00:00. (dreamgf.ai/plans + /pricing, side-by-side)

2026-07-07 DreamGF — Operator confirmed: DreamAI SRL, Bucharest, Romania (Trade Registry J40/12952/2023, incorporated 2023), also operating eHentai.ai, DreamBF.ai and JustPorn.ai per the site's own AI-Network footer. UK users require age verification since 2025-07-25 (their dated policy notice). (dreamgf.ai/terms + /policies + /policies/uk-users)

2026-07-06 Candy AI — Pricing page check (US-served HTML): $13.99/mo, $8.99/mo quarterly ($26.97), $3.99/mo annual ($47.88), plus weekly $5.60 and bi-weekly $9.79 plans not shown in the EU/UK browser view. Every plan renews at the same price and term — no intro-vs-renewal trap. Premium includes 100 tokens/mo. UK-geo pricing uses the same numerals in GBP (£13.99 vs $13.99, ~27% more). (candy.ai/subscriptions)

2026-07-06 Candy AI — Terms check: 24-hour refund window on subscriptions and token packs (card purchases only — crypto final); tokens expire at end of billing period on cancellation and are not restored on resubscribe; characters can be de-listed at sole discretion without refunds; EU/UK 14-day withdrawal applies to initial purchase only, prorated. Operator EverAI Limited (Malta, C107181); statement descriptor 'EverAI'. (candy.ai/terms-of-service)

2026-07-06 Candy AI — Live Action 'Beta v2' observed on character pages: AI video stream with XP/level system and gated action menu — the CamSoda AI live-show mechanic. Also live: Candy Shorts (per-character video series), Candy Roulette, interactive stories, and a cam-style /cams/ surface linked from a homepage LIVE tile. (candy.ai, logged-out session)

2026-07-06 DreamGF — Pricing page check: monthly plan is $12.99 first payment renewing at $25.99/mo; quarterly $29.97 renewing at $77.97; annual $69.99 renewing at $311.88. Token packs $2.99–$179.99; voice calls 7 tokens/min. Replaces the listing-derived $9.99–$99.99 tiers from our 07-02 snapshot — the renewal-pricing reputation flag is now confirmed first-party. (dreamgf.ai/pricing)

2026-07-03 CamSoda AI — Verified in-app: Premium at $2.99/mo (1-mo), $1.99/mo (3-mo), $0.99/mo (12-mo) under a sitewide '70% off' promo; benefits list 300 tokens/mo, private content, unlimited messaging, custom characters, spicy 18+ generation. (paywall modal, hands-on)

2026-07-03 CamSoda AI — Terms check: subscription auto-renews at US$19.95/mo after the intro period; token purchases are final-sale and unused tokens are forfeited on cancellation. (camsoda.ai/terms (modified 2025-11-10))

2026-07-03 CamSoda AI — Confirmed operator: Secure Live Media, LLC (Miami Beach, FL) — the CamSoda entity. Billing via Epoch with a discreet descriptor. First-party product, not a licensed clone. (2257 statement + site footer)

2026-07-02 Kupid AI — Verified at source: a $3.99/mo data-retention fee is charged on top of every subscription tier (our check)

2026-07-02 GirlfriendGPT — girlfriendgpt.com verified 301-redirecting to gptgirlfriend.online (our check)

2026-07-02 Character.AI — Free-tier degradation tracked: ads and paid message regenerations now in the free experience; c.ai+ unchanged at $9.99/mo (our check)

2026-07-02 Kindroid — New speech-to-text system for voice calls and voice notes: 60 languages with mid-sentence language switching, faster processing, fewer transcription errors. Followed a June 29 open beta of two new transcription providers. (kindroid.ai update log)

2026-07-02 SoulGen — Rebrand verified: soulgen.net 301-redirects to soulgen.ai; marketing de-NSFW’d while explicit output reportedly persists behind the paywall (our check)

2026-07-01 Industry — Tennessee's SB 1580 took effect: anyone developing or deploying an AI system is barred from advertising or representing it as (or as able to act as) a qualified mental health professional. Violations are deceptive trade practices under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act — civil penalties up to $5,000 per violation plus a private right of action. Directly relevant to companion apps hosting 'therapist' personas. (Tenn. SB 1580 (signed 2026-04-01, effective 2026-07-01); Husch Blackwell analysis)

2026-06-30 Character.AI — WIRED revealed Meta ran a covert program (codename 'Cannes', via contractor Covalen) paying contractors to pose as under-18 users and send crisis prompts — suicide, self-harm, eating disorders, sex — to rival chatbots including Character.AI: 45,000+ prompts in one August 2025 round. Character.AI said the testing violated its terms of service. (WIRED, via The Decoder 2026-06-30)

2026-06-24 Janitor AI — Launched its first-ever paid tier: janitor+ at $12.99/mo — 5x chat context/memory, unlimited priority messages, monthly swipes on frontier models, profile badge, early access to the new jllm-short beta model. Free tier explicitly unchanged. Ends janitor's run as the biggest all-free platform in the vertical. (janitorai.com/news/announcements/29)

2026-06-22 Janitor AI — Interface localized into 11 languages (German, Spanish, French, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese + English), switchable in settings; translated character content named as the next step. (janitorai.com/news/announcements/28)

2026-06-17 Character.AI — Creator feature bundle shipped: updated Creator Guide, character creation/editing on mobile, Creator Insights analytics dashboard (interactions, followers, likes), a Following tab, push notifications for followed creators' releases, and creator leaderboards. (blog.character.ai (2026-06-17))

2026-06-15 Janitor AI — Announced mandatory age verification for users in Brazil, Australia and the UK, citing each country's new law (Digital ECA, Online Safety Act 2021, UK OSA). Verification runs through k-ID with three options: on-device facial age estimation, ID scan, or a reusable AgeKey. No rollout date given; the company says it is 'fundamentally against KYC for social media' but faces fines or regional blocking. (janitorai.com/news/announcements/24)

2026-06-05 Industry — New York's S9051B — a ban on offering AI companion chatbots to anyone under 18, enforceable by the Attorney General at up to $25,000 per violation — passed both houses unanimously (Senate 60-0-1 on 06-04, Assembly 137-0 on 06-05; sponsors Sen. Kristen Gonzalez / Asm. Alex Bores, championed by AG Letitia James). Delivered to the Governor; NOT signed as of 2026-08-21. Effective January 1, 2027 if enacted — operators would need age assurance, not just the disclosure/crisis-protocol duties of New York's Article 47 (in force since 2025-11-05). (nysenate.gov bill page S9051B (actions through 'delivered to governor'); TechTimes 2026-06-13 (vote counts))

2025-11-24 Character.AI — Open-ended chat removed for under-18 users, starting in the US, with 'other markets following in short order' and a second group of teen users losing it weeks after the first. Announced October 29 for 'no later than November 25', with teen chat capped at two hours a day in the meantime. Who counts as under 18 is decided by an in-house age assurance model combined with third-party tools including Persona. (blog.character.ai/u18-chat-announcement/ (2025-10-29) and blog.character.ai/an-update-on-changes-to-our-under-18-experience/ (2025-11-21), read 2026-09-27) Obituary →

2025-07 Replika — Lifetime subscription tier removed (user reports / pricing page)

2025-05 Replika — Fined €5M by Italy's data-protection authority (Garante) for GDPR violations (Garante enforcement action)

2024-09 Muah AI — Data breach exposes ~1.9M user email addresses; extortion attempts follow (widely reported)