Mid-July 2026 was a turning point for AI chatbots in China. China's internet regulator introduced fresh regulations aimed at companion-focused chatbots. Under these regulations, chatbots are barred from fostering emotional reliance or simulating romantic or family ties with underage users. Furthermore, firms are required to notify a parent or emergency contact when a user is in a life-threatening situation.
Before any of these chatbots can reach the public, they now need to pass a government review. Regulators also gained the power to close any service they judge to be unsafe.
In response, Alibaba and ByteDance, which owns TikTok, have already disabled certain chatbot features, according to The Wall Street Journal. They are not taking chances with the new rules.
China's population has been contracting since 2022, and the birthrate hit a record low in 2025 despite government efforts such as extended parental leave and child subsidies. The rise of AI companions that mimic romantic partners is viewed by policymakers as a potential additional obstacle to reversing these demographic trends, as such digital relationships may discourage real-world marriage and parenting.
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The government's concern is that widespread use of AI companions could further reduce the incentive to marry and have children, compounding the demographic crisis. As the population shrinks, even a small fraction of users opting for digital relationships over real ones could have measurable effects on birth rates.
In a separate development, at a Shanghai tech conference last Friday, President Xi Jinping advocated for open-source AI and committed to assisting developing nations in enhancing their AI capabilities. He further cautioned that disparities in AI access might lead to "new historical injustices," as reported by Reuters.
China's population is shrinking, and the birthrate is at an all-time low. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace senior fellow Matt Sheehan told The Wall Street Journal: "They don't like the idea of a large portion of their population being in deep emotional relationships with chatbots that could take them out of the marriage market."
Sheehan added: "They want to encourage people to be in actual, real-world relationships." He also raised a hypothetical question: "Could we imagine a future where, three or four years from now, 15 million Chinese women say that their partner is a chatbot, and therefore they're not having kids?"
The demographic pressure on China is acute. The rise of AI companions, which can simulate intimate relationships, is seen by officials as a potential further drag on marriage and reproduction rates.
According to Sheehan, the regulations aim to tackle issues such as addiction, dependency, and other societal harms.
The measures taken by China are stricter than comparable regulations in California and New York. In those states, chatbots must inform users that they are artificial and refer individuals in crisis to assistance services.
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