Character.AI seeks to grow beyond its origins as an LLM-powered chatbot service. Its expansion now reaches past interactive books, comics, and audio dramas. The company unveiled c.ai Series today, consisting of short episodic videos built for phone-based viewing and user interaction.

Traditional microdrama platforms rely on low-cost live-action productions with human actors. In contrast, c.ai Series use animation created almost entirely through generative AI tools. The move into this space makes sense given projections that the microdrama sector could reach $26 billion within a few years. While some younger audiences express reservations about generative AI, this may not deter existing Character.AI users.

Each microdrama centers on distinct characters placed in adventures across genres such as romance, horror, and science fiction. Similar content appears on apps like ReelShort and DramaBox. The key distinction for c.ai Series lies in the option for viewers to chat directly with characters once an episode ends.

Three initial projects launch the effort. Last Summer explores secret admirers in an anime style. The Nighttime Game, reminiscent of Netflix's Entergalactic, involves friends in a lethal card game. Eden Fall tracks elite MMO players entering a Ready Player One-inspired virtual realm with visuals akin to Genshin Impact. Each series begins with 10 episodes under two minutes long. The first eight episodes per series remain free for all users, while the final two require payment.

Image: Character.AI

The company states that its in-house studio team, led by humans, developed these first series with AI integrated into the workflow. Future plans include opening the platform so external creators can build their own microdramas using Character.AI tools.

At first glance, this effort mirrors steps taken by networks such as Fox, Bravo, and BET into vertical video formats. Yet CEO Karandeep Anand described microdramas as a natural progression rather than a trend-driven move.

"Microdramas continue the larger path toward a broader storytelling and entertainment platform," Anand noted. "This forms a logical extension of existing user activities and creates another major entry point to our community."

Although the feature could have launched earlier, Anand avoided a rushed release to prevent low-quality output. Scripts came from Hollywood screenwriters and detailed lore bibles from a small creator group. These fed into an internal agentic pipeline for visuals and audio, followed by standard editing tools.

Production for the initial three series spanned several weeks, matching timelines for live-action microdramas elsewhere. In-house models were chosen over third-party options to preserve visual consistency across scenes.

"Text-focused LLMs have seen remarkable progress, yet multimodal image and video models lag behind," Anand said. "Our models help maintain character consistency in visuals and tone throughout scenes."

Image: Character.AI

The resulting microdramas appear more refined than typical AI-generated animations online. Scenes show clear direction and basic visual storytelling. Some dialogue feels stiff and expressions remain limited, confirming the absence of live actors. Still, compared with the uneven quality of many live-action microdramas, these may appeal to Character.AI users interested in the interactive elements.

Viewers can roleplay or converse with series characters much like standard chatbots. Each episode runs on a dedicated LLM limited to on-screen information to avoid spoilers. The bots aim to entertain, which explains why underage users are restricted from interacting with them.

Addressing past concerns around chatbot interactions and younger users, Anand highlighted new safeguards including strict age verification. At launch, series access is limited to those over 18. Younger viewers may watch later but cannot use the associated chat features.

Character.AI built its reputation around letting fans insert themselves into fictional settings. The new series appear well positioned to engage that audience through interactive storytelling.

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Charles Pulliam-Moore