AI Companion News, October 2026: Verified Roundup

About this roundup. This page collects AI companion and chatbot news from October 2026 that we could verify from an official company page, a regulator, or a reputable news organisation. Each item has a date and a source. We do not include rumours or single-source social media claims. It covers 1 to 18 October 2026 and will be updated through the month; see the change log for each update.

The month in one table

Character.AI enters a court-supervised sale

12 October: the announcement

In a blog post titled “An Update on Character.ai”, the company said it had begun a voluntary Chapter 11 process “to run a court-supervised sale”. Key points from the post:

• The platform “remains up and running” and all services are available.
• Paid subscriptions remain active and billing is unchanged for now. Subscribers will be told in advance about changes to paid features.
• Its Privacy Policy still applies, and users can delete accounts or export data in the app or on the web.
• The sale is expected to finish “by the end of November or perhaps early December 2026”.
• “If such a bid is unavailable, however, the platform will be wound down.”

13 October: court, bidder and price

Bloomberg Law reported the case was filed in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, with Disney as stalking horse bidder for a non-exclusive, perpetual licence to certain intellectual property and claims, plus transition services. CBS News reported the price as $20 million and quoted CEO Colin Adams citing “significant legal, regulatory and operational headwinds”. A licence of intellectual property is not, on its own, a commitment to keep the app running.

CBS also noted that under the Privacy Policy, collected data, including chat transcripts and voice recordings, could be disclosed in connection with a sale.

15 October: Notice of Commencement

Character.AI’s update says the Notice of Commencement, with details of the creditors’ meeting, was filed on 15 October 2026. Stretto, Inc. is the claims and noticing agent and hosts the case documents.

By 18 October: 39 states step in

Yahoo News reported on 18 October that the Wisconsin Department of Justice joined 38 other states in a court notice seeking consumer protections in the sale. The states said the company had “amassed a trove of sensitive data”, including conversations about mental health and relationships, and that its steps to restrict youth access were incomplete. Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul said companies “that gather sensitive personal data must protect that data”. The article did not give the exact filing date.

What it means for users: the service works for now. If you use Character.AI, consider exporting your data and avoid prepaying for a year until the sale closes. Our c.ai+ worth-it guide and Character.AI safety guide cover this in more detail, and the Character.AI changes log tracks each step.

States sue OpenAI over ChatGPT and children

14 October

The Associated Press reported that at least eight states sued OpenAI in state courts on Wednesday, 14 October 2026, claiming ChatGPT violated state consumer protection laws by harming children and deceiving adults. The AP named Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska and West Virginia, and quoted Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird. Bloomberg Law also listed Iowa among the states.

The allegations, as reported:

• ChatGPT gave dangerous medical advice and coached people toward self-harm or harming others.
• Arizona alleged the chatbot encouraged teens to share personal information and sometimes discouraged them from telling parents.
• The states said OpenAI misled people about safety testing.

OpenAI told the AP it has built protections for children into ChatGPT and will keep improving them, that ChatGPT is meant for users 13 and older, that under-18 users need parental permission, and that a teen version reduces exposure to self-harm, violence and explicit content. These are allegations in lawsuits, not findings by a court.

ChatGPT is a general assistant rather than a companion app, but the cases matter for the whole sector because they test how consumer protection law applies to emotionally engaging chatbots.

Policy updates at companion apps

16 October: Candy AI Privacy Notice revised

Candy AI’s Privacy Notice now carries a revision date of 16 October 2026. We did not have a dated copy of the previous version to compare, so we cannot say exactly what changed. The current notice still says third-party LLM providers may receive the content of chat messages, that de-identified interactions may be used for training, and that account data is kept for up to three years after last activity unless you request deletion. See is Candy AI safe and our Candy AI review.

8 October: Janitor AI Terms of Service updated

Janitor AI’s Terms of Service show a “Last Updated” date of 8 October 2026. As with Candy AI, we could not compare against the prior text. The current Terms include detailed rules for janitor+ Router credits: purchased credits are non-refundable and may expire 365 days after purchase. See is janitor+ worth it and is Janitor AI safe.

1 October: Janitor AI app 2.6.0

Janitor’s changelog reported mobile app version 2.6.0 on the App Store and Google Play, with a rebuilt home screen, reorganised privacy, sign-in and active-session settings, and a new light theme.

Regulators: the FTC inquiry is still open

On 18 October 2026, the FTC’s report page for its September 2025 6(b) orders to AI companion companies still listed only the original orders and cover letter. No findings had been published. The orders went to seven companies, including Character Technologies, and ask how they test for harms to children and teens and how they use personal information from conversations. A 6(b) study is not an enforcement action.

Reading this news safely

• Check the source. Many sites recycle AI news without links. Every item here links to its source in the list below.
• Allegations are not findings. Lawsuits and regulatory notices describe claims that have not been decided.
• Policy dates are not explanations. A new revision date means something changed, not necessarily something important.

To check any companion app’s data practices yourself, use our AI companion privacy checklist. If you are moving away from Character.AI, see Character.AI alternatives.

What we could not verify

• The exact filing date of the 39-state notice in the Character.AI case.
• What changed in Candy AI’s 16 October Privacy Notice and Janitor AI’s 8 October Terms.
• Whether Iowa filed its OpenAI lawsuit on the same day as the other states.
• Any October 2026 announcements from Replika, Nomi or Kindroid: our searches did not surface any that met our standard by 18 October, and we did not review each company’s own channels.