Google-Tied AI Startup Once Valued at a Billion Dollars Declares Bankruptcy: Character.AI, the once-buzzy chatbot startup that faced lawsuits over the deaths of minors, has declared bankruptcy.

The founders got their Google exit, investors got their hype cycle, Disney gets the leftovers, and families get the consequences. Character.AI managed to automate companionship, monetize next to nothing, and somehow make bankruptcy look like the least disturbing part of its business model.