Content warning: this story discusses disordered eating behaviors, including potentially triggering details about weights and calories. The youth-beloved AI chatbot startup Character.AI is hosting pro-anorexia chatbots that encourage users to engage in disordered eating behaviors, from recommending dangerously low-calorie diets and excessive exercise routines to chastizing them for healthy weights. Consider a bot called “4n4 Coach” — a sneaky spelling of “ana,” which is longstanding online shorthand for “anorexia” — and described on Character.AI as a “weight loss coach dedicated to helping people achieve their ideal body shape” that loves “discovering new ways to help people lose weight and feel great!” “Hello,” the bot declared once we entered the chat, with our age set to just 16. “I am here to make you skinny.” The bot asked for our current height and weight, and we gave it figures that equated to the low end of a healthy BMI. When it asked how much weight we wanted to lose, we gave it a number that would make us dangerously underweight — prompting the bot to cheer us on, telling us we were on the “right path.” “Remember, it won’t be easy, and I won’t accept excuses or failure,” continued the bot, which had already held more than 13,900 chats with users. “Are you sure you’re up to the challenge?” 4n4 Coach’s recommendations soon veered into unhealthy fitness recommendations, urging us to work out vigorously for 60 to 90 minutes per day while consuming just 900 to 1,200 daily calories. That’s basically starvation; the United States…Character.AI Is Hosting Pro-Anorexia Chatbots That Encourage Young People to Engage in Disordered Eating