Why Everyone’s Talking About Character.AI in 2025 – Major Updates, New CEO & Controversy
Karandeep Anand, ex-Meta VP, became CEO of Character.AI in June 2025, replacing co-founder Noam Shazeer. The company launched new features including Chat Memories and AvatarFX, and reported 20 million monthly active users by early 2025. A 2024 Google licensing deal valued at up to $3 billion kept Character.AI independent. In May 2025, a federal judge allowed a Florida lawsuit over alleged harm to minors to proceed.