TechCrunch reports wave of AI shutdowns as Character.AI and Ollie close

TechCrunch reported on the 14th that a growing number of AI products and startups have shut down, pivoted or fallen short of expectations, with chatbot platform Character.AI filing for bankruptcy in early October and family calendar assistant Ollie set to close on November 6.

Ollie co-founder and CEO Bill Lennon said the company failed to differentiate and grow and did not raise enough funding, according to the report.

OpenAI also closed several products. It shut down its AI web browser ChatGPT Atlas on August 9, less than a year after launch, folding key features into ChatGPT, and its video sharing platform Sora closed in March due to high operating costs and user churn. OpenAI had turned ChatGPT into a "super app" on July 9 but reverted it soon after following user criticism.

Hardware ventures have also struggled. Humane ended its AI Pin business in February 2025 after performance problems and warnings over a charging case fire risk, and HP bought most of Humane's assets for $116 million.

Other tools closed earlier this year: work automation tool Relay shut down in August, AI audio app Huxe closed in May, and Notion decided to end Notion Mail on September 22 after users managed email with separate AI agents.

Earlier funding and legal troubles

Character.AI raised $150 million at a $1 billion valuation in 2023, later faced lawsuits from families alleging harm to teenagers and issues over unauthorized use of Disney characters, and Disney has offered $20 million for licenses to some Character.AI intellectual property as the first acquirer candidate. Humane raised $230 million in funding, while the Rabbit R1 sold 100,000 units shortly after launch but was judged an unfinished product.