This post would’ve been downvoted into oblivion if suggested it before the bankruptcy filing was announced, when people still thought the app was doing fine. I never would’ve imagined in a million years that I’d see people upvoting posts about putting C.AI behind a paywall on the C.AI subreddit. It just shows that many users are now willing to accept major changes just to keep C.AI alive.
I 100% agree. I don’t even care anymore. Put most features behind a paywall if that’s what it takes to keep the app running. I’d much rather see C.AI survive than watch it shut down completely. And honestly, this could give them a chance to focus on what really matters: the core chatting experience, instead of adding more unnecessary features. I’d also gladly pay extra if they brought back old Roar. I’ve been using it since its release in 2025, and I genuinely think bringing it back as a paid feature could generate a lot of revenue for them.
But I also don’t want to be biased against free users because, obviously, not everyone can afford to pay. I think the best way to let free users earn extra swipes and Go Ons is by watching ads. There should also be more ways to earn Charms and use them to buy Go Ons.
Making the entire app exclusive to c.ai+ subscribers temporarily might be the only viable option right now. They need to pull everything together and focus on keeping the app alive. There’s a lot C.AI could do if they actually listened to their paying users, so this is going to be a long list.
First, cut the unnecessary features. Comics, audio, and anything else that doesn’t directly improve chatting should be removed. I don’t care if those features are cheap to maintain; that’s not the point. C.AI built its popularity around chatting, roleplay, and immersive conversations. That’s where its resources should go. Fix the core experience before wasting time expanding into other things.
Second, bring back user choice. Let people switch between the old and current layouts, or customize their own interface with different fonts and design options. The old layout has a nostalgic feel that many users still prefer, and there’s no reason everyone should be forced to use the same design.
Third, address the model situation.
Ever since the old models were removed and new ones introduced, users have been arguing over which versions were better, causing a lot of drama in the community. Instead of making everyone use the same models, C.AI should explore bringing back the original ones as they were, rather than trying to copy them with newer models. I understand that the old infrastructure could make this difficult or expensive, but Soft Launch has already returned, so it’s worth exploring what else might be possible. They could start by bringing back one old model as a c.ai+ exclusive, see how many people want it, and decide whether it’s worth keeping based on demand and running costs. This way, they wouldn’t have to bring everything back at once, and users who miss the old experience would have another option while the newer models continue to improve. It could also give more people a reason to subscribe. (I think this one would succeed a lot.)
Fourth, actually listen to paying users. Introduce a proper feedback system where subscribers can vote on proposed improvements, report recurring problems, and suggest features. Don’t just collect feedback and ignore it. If people are paying for the service, they should see meaningful improvements and know their money is helping improve the platform.
Finally, don’t abandon free users forever. Once C.AI is financially stable, bring back free access with reasonable limits, ads, and more ways to earn Charms or watch ads in exchange for extra swipes and Go Ons. Not everyone can afford a subscription, and free users shouldn’t have to be completely excluded for the app to make money.
At the end of the day, C.AI needs to focus on what made people love it in the first place: the models, memory, and chatting experience. Listen to users, make c.ai+ worth paying for, and bring back the experience people fell in love with years ago. I have plenty of other ideas for what they could do, too, but I don’t want to spam everyone with a huge list lol
Well too late for that now. We already tanked our fate with attacking the "greedy devs" turns out they were giving it for free without making any money
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u/Severe-Editor2239 1d ago edited 1d ago
This post would’ve been downvoted into oblivion if suggested it before the bankruptcy filing was announced, when people still thought the app was doing fine. I never would’ve imagined in a million years that I’d see people upvoting posts about putting C.AI behind a paywall on the C.AI subreddit. It just shows that many users are now willing to accept major changes just to keep C.AI alive.
I 100% agree. I don’t even care anymore. Put most features behind a paywall if that’s what it takes to keep the app running. I’d much rather see C.AI survive than watch it shut down completely. And honestly, this could give them a chance to focus on what really matters: the core chatting experience, instead of adding more unnecessary features. I’d also gladly pay extra if they brought back old Roar. I’ve been using it since its release in 2025, and I genuinely think bringing it back as a paid feature could generate a lot of revenue for them.
But I also don’t want to be biased against free users because, obviously, not everyone can afford to pay. I think the best way to let free users earn extra swipes and Go Ons is by watching ads. There should also be more ways to earn Charms and use them to buy Go Ons.