Chai

Chai is one of the bigger players in this space by the numbers, reporting over 10 million active users and $120M in annualized revenue as of late 2026, built on more than $55M in funding. Unlike Janitor AI, it runs its own conversational AI research and models rather than depending on an outside API. Inside the app, you can build your own characters and stories or chat with ones the community has already made, and the company frames itself as doing active research into conversational generative AI rather than just running a chat frontend. It's mobile-first, with iOS and Android apps front and center, and a web version listed as coming rather than available yet. There's less public detail on pricing and content policy directly on its marketing page than you'd get from some competitors, it links out to a separate Safety page rather than spelling out rules upfront, so it's worth reading that before assuming what is or isn't allowed.

• Category: AI Characters
• Pricing: Freemium
• Platforms: iOS, Android

Key features

• In-house conversational AI models, not a third-party API passthrough
• Build your own characters and stories
• Chat with community-created characters
• Reported 10M+ active users
• iOS and Android apps, web version coming

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Runs its own models instead of depending on an outside AI provider
• Large, active user base and ongoing funding suggest it's not going anywhere soon
• Mobile apps are the primary, polished experience

Cons

• Pricing isn't detailed on the main marketing page
• No web app yet if you'd rather not use a phone
• Content policy sits behind a separate Safety page rather than being stated upfront

FAQs

Does Chai use its own AI or someone else's?

Its own, the company describes itself as doing in-house research into conversational generative AI rather than just wrapping another provider's model.

Is there a web version?

Not yet, the main experience is iOS and Android apps, with a web version listed as coming soon.

Visit Chai