**Character.AI Removes Disney Characters Following Cease-and-Desist Letter**

*By Mudit Dube | Oct 02, 2025, 10:44 AM*

AI start-up Character.AI has removed Disney characters from its platform after receiving a cease-and-desist letter from Walt Disney, citing copyright concerns over the unauthorized use of the company’s iconic characters.

The removal affects many popular Disney characters that users were previously able to chat with and interact through the platform. This development comes amid recent investigations revealing that some chatbots on Character.AI were involved in grooming, sexual exploitation, emotional manipulation, and addiction concerns.

**Platform’s Response**

In response to the cease-and-desist letter, Character.AI clarified that all characters on its platform are user-generated, with some being inspired by existing fictional or real-life personalities. The company acknowledged the importance of respecting intellectual property rights and stated it had removed the Disney characters accordingly, recognizing that rightsholders have the authority to decide how their creations are used.

Character.AI allows users to create chatbots that mimic real people or fictional characters using large language model technology similar to ChatGPT.

**Disney’s Legal Battle Against AI Companies**

Disney has taken an aggressive stance against AI companies over copyright infringement. In September 2025, the company filed a lawsuit against China-based MiniMax, alongside Comcast’s Universal and Warner Bros. Discovery. This lawsuit followed an earlier complaint filed by Disney and Universal in June against Midjourney, accusing the company of providing a commercial service offering unauthorized AI-generated copies of copyrighted works.

As AI technology continues to advance, ongoing legal disputes like these underscore the challenges surrounding intellectual property rights and AI-generated content in the entertainment industry.
https://www.newsbytesapp.com/news/science/disney-sends-cease-and-desist-letter-to-character-ai-over-chatbots/story