The artificial intelligence entertainment platform Character.AI introduced on Thursday a feature allowing users to role-play in more than 20 classic books, including Hamlet, Alice in Wonderland, Pride and Prejudice, The Great Gatsby.
"Books" lets Character.AI users engage in open-ended chats based on these and other famous titles in the public domain. Users can participate as a character from the book or as the "character" they've created on the platform.
Users can either follow the book's original narrative arc or go "off script" to interact with its characters as they wish. Additionally, Books offers "alternate universe remixes" in which players can overhaul a title's original premise, such as imagining Jay Gatsby in space. These remixes can be shared with the broader Character.AI community and subsequently browsed and played by other users.
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In a blog post announcing the feature, Character.AI preemptively addressed the concern that it might encourage people to play classic literature rather than actually read it.
"Step into a story, talk to its characters, and there's a good chance you walk away wanting to pick up the original," the company said. "Not replacing books — but making them impossible to ignore."
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Books lets users engage in open-ended chat with classic books like "Alice in Wonderland." Credit: Character.AI
Users without a paid subscription can try Books with a "handful of free turns," according to the company. Subscribers are able to explore the entire Books library.
Books will be available to users age 18 and older. Last fall, Character.AI shut down open-ended chats for teens, following lawsuits alleging that teens who used the platform experienced severe harm, including sexual abuse. The company settled the lawsuits earlier this year.
A spokesperson for Character.AI confirmed to Mashable that while users can prompt "romantic narratives" in Books, the company will moderate content that violate its terms of service, in addition to reviewing user reports of such behavior.
Character.AI policies prohibit certain types of behavior, including the depiction of excessive, graphic violence against people and animals; hate speech that demeans or promotes discrimination based on race, ethnicity, gender, and other characteristics; and content that promotes terrorism or violent extremism.
The policies also bar content that is obscene or pornographic, constitutes sexual harassment, and depicts the sexual exploitation or abuse of a minor.
"As with all of our content, [Books] interactions remain subject to our policies and our safety systems, including both automated and human review," the spokesperson said.