Character.AI, the platform that lets people chat with customised AI avatars, has entered the fast-growing "microdrama" market by producing its own short-form series made with AI production tools. The distinguishing feature is that users over 18 can chat with the shows' characters, ask them questions and role-play alternative storylines, drawing on the company's core conversational product. The move matters because microdramas have become a major battleground in the attention economy, with apps, social media giants and streaming services all rushing in.

The company is launching three series to begin with: a romance titled "Last Summer", a horror show called "The Nighttime Game" and a Hunger Games-style survival drama named "Eden Fall". It describes this as a studio-led model intended to refine the format before eventually offering creator tools so users can build and share their own series. The launch follows a broader shift towards entertainment, including the Lorebook and Books features, plus newly tested tools c.ai FM for audio series and c.ai Reads for fiction. According to Sensor Tower, users spent more than 950 minutes a month on Character.AI in the first half of 2026.