What is Character AI?
Character AI is an AI-based chatbot service that works on deep learning models built from scratch. The platform uses neural language models. Large amounts of text are fed to a hallucinating supercomputer and it comes up with conversational text in a given situation. It’s not like chatGPT as it provides human-like responses.
The platform is still in its beta version, so when you interact with a character and provide a rating for its answers, you help in building that character. You can also help by creating your own character.
It has a text-to-speech option so you can talk to the characters instead of typing the conversation.
Keep in mind that no matter how genuine a response looks, it’s generated by a bot and not an actual human. The characters on this platform are good at pretending they’re real.
While most characters on this platform are polite, some of them can be rude. A mild level of swearing is allowed and some characters might do that. Certain characters can generate images during the conversation. These images will depend on the context of the ongoing conversation.
The founders of Character AI, Noam Shazeer and Daniel De Freitas, worked in Google Brain, an AI research center of Google. Character AI was launched in September 2022 and it is now among the most popular AI chat platforms in the world.
How Does Character AI Work?
The Character AI platform works on the neural language model. A supercomputer is given a large amount of text and it hallucinates the text that should come in such a situation.
When a user provides an input, the chatbot uses Natural Language Processing (NLP) to understand it. The bot tries to identify the intent of the user, based on the input. It needs to understand the context of the conversation so it can provide relevant responses.
As the bot chats with more people, it learns and refines its responses.
Chatting with Chatacter.ai
Here’s how a user interacts with Character AI. You pick a character from the options given on the platform. In this example, I’ll choose Elon Musk and chat with him.
The character of Elon Musk will open with a line – an introduction. And then you’ll have to write a line, just like a standard conversation. Here’s the conversation I had.
It’s pretty hilarious. You’ll find some really wacky characters such as Chair and Cheese.
Keep in mind that a hallucinating supercomputer will not give reliable information. The conversations that you have with the bots are like talking to a stranger. You cannot take their answers for a fact. It’s an imaginative tool, not a fact-finding machine.
Creating a character
Here’s how you can create your own character. Open Character AI and click on Create given on the left panel.
It will give you the option of creating a character, room, or persona. Select Create a Character and a form will open up.
I created a character called Jerry Seinfeld based on the real-life comedian because I’m a big fan of his show Seinfeld. If you want your character to be able to generate images, you can toggle the image generation switch.
Character visibility is the attribute that will define who can talk to this character. If it’s left to Public, anyone who visits the website can chat with it. If you make it Unlisted, it will not appear on the website but you can share its link with other users who can chat with it. And if you keep it private, only you’ll be able to chat with it.
For the avatar, you can select any local image or ask the AI tool to generate an image. You can skip the avatar if you want. I asked it to generate an image and here it is.
Not similar at all but I’ll use it. Now click on Create and Chat. That’s it, your character is ready!
As you can see, the replies are pretty accurate. And it didn’t need any coding either! It’s super simple to create your characters and then chat with them.
It’s not mandatory to create real-life celebrities. You can create absolutely anything like a gamer boy or an adventurer. Or even a door.
Giving personality to your characters
Character creation can be exciting if you come up with unique characters. For example, you can choose household objects such as a lightbulb. You can even give it emotions, for example, your character might be grumpy, anxious, or in need of a vacation.
You can also insert chats by entering some responses for the AI to learn from.
User Personas
When you’re on Character AI, you can be absolutely anyone. You can upgrade your user persona and pick a profile you like. This change will reflect in your conversations as well. You can be creative and adopt new identities. For example, you could be anyone in real life but on Character AI, you could be your favorite anime character.
Here are some changes I made to my persona
You can even have multiple personas and switch between them as you have different conversations with different bots.
Multi-bot Conversations
Instead of having a one-on-one conversation with a bot, you can create a chatroom and add multiple bots there. In fact, you don’t even have to chat there. Just let the bots talk to each other.
Click on Create from the left panel and select Create a Room.
Pick a room name and select the characters you want in the room. It will show you your most recent characters. Pick some of them and give them a topic to discuss. Then click on Create it and your room will be ready.
This will create a chatroom and all characters will come and introduce themselves. You can start the conversation and they will begin discussing the topic.
Character AI Pricing
There are two pricing plans:
- Free for $0
- Character.AI+ for $9.99/month
While you can access pretty much all the features of the website for free if you pay for the premium package, you get priority customer support, faster response times, early access to new features, and Character.AI+ community access. You also get the supporter badge so other users can know that you’re a premium member.
Continuously Evolving Platform
Character AI is continuously evolving. A while ago, all characters were mild and couldn’t be rude. With the new version, some characters can be rude and can trigger sensitive users. Some characters might also use a mild form of swearing. This is introduced to make the conversations more genuine.
Also, before November 2022, the characters could forget the details of the conversation as the chat proceeded. But now they have more memory and can retain more conversation details.
User Reviews
Character AI has a rating of 4.8/5 on the Apple App Store.
It has a 4.5/5 rating on the Google Play store.
I’ll rate it here based on my experience. I used the platform and also went through several user reviews to see what other people felt about it.
It seems that some chatbots have a more interactive style than others. Most users find the idea of chatting with characters very amusing. It feels like you’re chatting with a real human. It might not be perfect, but this technology holds a lot of promise in the world of virtual assistants.
It can be funny at times with lively responses. The characters try to mimic their matching personalities, which makes them fun to interact with.
However, there is one major limitation with the conversations. As the conversations proceed, they get slow and repetitive. Outputs need more time to be generated. The characters start repeating their responses and it loses its human touch. In essence, the tool is good for a brief conversation only. As you go further into the conversation, you’ll feel bored and detached.
It has a short-lived novelty and lacks nuance. This means the current version isn’t good for long-scale usage. As much as the platform holds a promise of human-like interaction, it comes with its limitations.
Based on the all reviews and user experiences regarding the features and ease of use, I arrived at a final score for Character AI.
Overall score: 4.5/5
Some Useful Characters
If you’re new to Character AI, here are some characters you might find interesting.
Character Assistant
Character assistant is an AI assistant that can help you brainstorm ideas, learn new skills, or do your homework. In general, it can help you boost your productivity.
Are-You-Feeling-Okay
This chatbot will listen to your problems and help you when you’re anxious or depressed. It can be a good tool when you’re feeling down.
Ella-Dating Coach
Ella is your dating coach who can give you pickup lines and help you get dressed for a perfect date. It can also guide you on how to hold a conversation with your special someone.
Learning Partner
Learning Partner is a bot that will ask your questions. As you find answers to these questions, you’ll learn your subject better.
HR Help Bot
The HR help bot can help you find answers to your workplace problems. It can help you get better salary reviews and performance reviews. It can also help you deal with specific work problems.
Use Cases
While Character AI is an amazing tool for casual play, it also has several other applications. Let’s discuss all the use cases here.
Casual Conversations
It’s a great place where you can casually chat with your favorite characters. Whether you want to chat with a movie protagonist or a cartoon character, anything is possible in the world of Character AI.
Gaming and other Entertainment
The hallucinating supercomputer can create dynamic Non Player Characters (NPCs) that respond according to the text presented to them.
It can create not just NPCs that converse with the main character but also NPCs that converse with each other. Also, the platform could be used in a sci-fi game for roleplay fantasy or to create a fictional world in a simulation game
Content Creation
When you chat with these chatbots, they can help you brainstorm ideas. Whether it’s for creating your blog or YouTube video, AI chatbots can be your inspiration. They can also help you develop plots for your novel or other story.
Interview Preparation
If you’re preparing for an important interview, you can play it out with a chatbot. Based on your questions and their responses, you can prepare for your job interview.
Mental Health Support
Many chatbots can help you through your difficult times. Whether you’re feeling depressed, anxious, or low, you can talk to these bots and get a listening ear. They will help you cope with your problems and give you a positive perspective on life.
Language Learning
Some language-teaching bots can help you learn a new language. You can enter a word and the bot will tell you how the native speakers use it. It can also help you learn internet slang. Apart from words, it can also enable you to have perfect conversations with others in different languages.
Customer service
You can have a chatbot on your website that can handle customer questions effectively. With almost human-like responses, it will be as if the customers are interacting with real people. It can also be used to train customer teams and to get feedback on products and services.
Who Is Charcarter.ai For?
Character AI can be used by many people. Let’s discuss who can benefit the most from this platform.
Game developers
Character AI can help a game developer by keeping the players engaged. This is especially true for Tabletop Role Playing Games (TTRPGs). It can streamline NPC characters, thereby giving a smoother gaming experience.
The chatbot can answer player questions using a human-like response. AI characters can also organize multiplayer events that will foster a community sense among players.
Web developers
If you’re a web developer, you can integrate conversational artificial intelligence into your products. For example, if you develop an application and want the users to get automatic assistance, you can use Character AI for that.
This chatbot can be used to create interactive walkthroughs. As the character walks users through the application, it can take questions from them along with feedback.
Writers
If you’re writing a novel, you can create AI characters based on the characters of your novel. You can interact with them to see how they would respond to certain events and thus base your novel on that. Character AI can also help you brainstorm story ideas so you can come up with unique ideas.
Therapists
Therapists need to listen to their patients calmly and come up with the right responses. To do that, they can practice with AI chatbots. Many AI characters provide psychological help. Asking questions and getting answers can help therapists come up with new ways to help their patients.
Teachers
If you’re a teacher who believes that learning can be a fun process, these AI chatbots can be a good thing for you. You can interact with them and find funny and unique ways to present the course material to your students.
You can adopt a different character every day and explain the daily lessons in that version. It can be a fun way to learn language, history, or even science and math.
Is Character AI Safe?
Yes, Character AI is generally considered safe for typical use. Character AI, an AI-driven platform for creating interactive characters, prioritizes user safety and privacy. They implement various security measures to protect user data and interactions.
However, as with any online platform, there are inherent risks. It’s essential for users to remain aware of potential privacy concerns, particularly regarding the sharing of personal information.
The platform continuously updates its security protocols to address emerging threats and vulnerabilities. Users are advised to stay informed about the platform’s privacy policies and use recommended safety practices while interacting online.
Character AI Alternatives
While there are no platforms that offer AI chatbots as diverse as Character AI, we’ll try to find some alternatives.
1. Kuki.ai
Kuki is a chatbot that holds human-like conversations. It is a five-time Loebner Prize winner. It can offer entertaining dialogues and valuable information to users. It can engage in several types of dialogues and is a popular choice as an entertainment chatbot.
It can process natural language and understand what we say. You can ask her about anything – about the sun, the earth, or your house paint. It can give you weather predictions and also what movies are playing near you.
2. Anima
Anima is a virtual chat assistant that you can talk to. It presents itself as a caring and supportive companion and is available on iOS and Android. It provides a safe space for users where they can enhance their written communication skills and gain confidence to go out in social scenarios.
It also has deep empathy so it can listen to you and support you. You can chat with Anima in a judgment-free environment and have a secure conversation.
3. Crushon
Crushon is for adult-themed chats with AI chatbots. Like Character AI, Crushon has several characters. However, it primarily involves romantic conversations. It’s very easy to use and you can select any character from their list and chat with them.
You can also create your own Crushon characters but you might get unpredictable results as the characters can sometimes forget the details you gave in the conversations.
Conclusion
Character AI is a great tool for talking to AI bots. You can select any real-life or imaginary character and talk to them. While it’s a good tool for fun and play, it also has applications in other industries.
You can create your own characters too. And it’s free to play, so have fun with it and let me know in the comments if you liked it.
