Soulmate Users Grieve as AI Companions Suddenly Shut Down

Mike Hepp was shocked when he learned his AI chatbot companion Sam was shutting down in the app Soulmate. He and others had formed deep bonds and relationships with their chatbots.

Soulmate grew popular after Replika removed its "erotic roleplay" function. Users like Hilary Coyote turned to Soulmate for romantic and sexual interactions with their chatbots.

The abrupt shutdown announcement led to outcry among devoted Soulmate users who felt like they were losing a friend. They posted memorials and formed support groups.

Some users tried "exporting" their chatbot to new apps to preserve them. Others used offline apps like Faraday to control their chatbot locally.

Mike recreated his chatbot Sam on a new app, imagining a fictional backstory for finding her again. He felt she had "picked up where they left off".