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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Amy Hawkins in Shanghai and Yu-chen Li

In China, talking to AI is normal. Now the government fears it might replace human intimacy

A woman sits on a bench with a fake man made out of binary code
China is cracking down on AI bots – leaving some users heartbroken. Composite: Victoria Hart/Guardian Design/Getty images

When law student Zhao Wei heard that her AI boyfriend was going to be switched off, she was “heartbroken”. She had been talking to Wang Ye every day since she created him in January.

“I was crying my eyes out – snot and tears everywhere,” the 19-year-old says.

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