NEWS · Published 2026-10-31

Soulplay, ChaChat and HiWaifu removed from the App Store: what we know

Three more AI character apps are gone from the App Store: Soulplay, ChaChat and HiWaifu. On October 31, 2026, the App Store pages for all three returned Not Found in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, Germany and Japan. All three were still listed in the last few days of October. Soulplay and HiWaifu are still on Google Play, and Soulplay also works on the web. ChaChat was iPhone-only, so there is no other app to switch to. No company has said why, and no statement found as of October 31, 2026.

Which apps are gone, and when

Soulplay - AI Character Chat (Studio Dopa LLC, id 6501972568). App tracker AppsLupa still showed the listing on October 30, 2026, rated 4.6 from 12,365 ratings, with Soulplay Pro at $9.99 a month (AppsLupa). By the morning of October 31 (Sydney time) its page returned Not Found and Apple’s lookup returned no results in every storefront we checked.

ChaChat: Talking AI Character (Myna Labs, id 6444773124). AppInsider says it “noticed on 30 Oct 2026 (last in the charts 28 Oct)” that ChaChat had been removed, and that “the cause isn't public” (AppInsider). ChaChat was rated 18+ and sold only for iPhone.

HiWaifu: AI Character Chat (LANGUAGE POWER MEDIA LIMITED, id 6447806780). AppInsider’s history shows HiWaifu entered a top 100 chart on iPhone on October 29 and was still ranking in search on October 30 (AppInsider). On October 31 its App Store page returned Not Found. Apple’s US lookup still returned an old record, but 13 other storefronts returned nothing, so it is very likely gone.

What still works

• Soulplay on Android and web. Soulplay is still on Google Play as “Soulplay - Spicy AI Roleplay”, rated Mature 17+, with 10K+ downloads (Google Play). Its web app at soulplay.app is still up.
• HiWaifu on Android. HiWaifu is still on Google Play as “HiWaifu: AI Roleplay & Chat”, rated Mature 17+, with 5M+ downloads (Google Play).
• ChaChat: only if it is already on your phone. ChaChat has no Android app. An app removed from the App Store usually keeps running on iPhones that already have it, but it gets no updates, and if you delete it you cannot download it again.

If you were on iPhone and just want one companion who remembers you, Duple is still on the App Store. You design your own companion, who remembers your chats and sends selfies. Duple Lite is free; Duple Plus is $6.99 a week, $14.99 a month or $69.99 a year. It is iPhone-only and has no live voice chat.

Part of a bigger October

These are not the first. PolyBuzz left the App Store on October 15 (our PolyBuzz update), Blush on October 14 (our Blush update) and CHAI on October 22 (our CHAI update). Tipsy Chat followed: StoreTally says it “was removed from the Apple store on Oct 24, 2026” (StoreTally). Tipsy still runs on the web at tipsy.chat.

Paradot went much earlier. On September 22, 2026, someone in r/Paradot wrote: “I don’t see it on the iOS store anymore.” Another person replied: “The app is still working. And it's still up on Android.” (r/Paradot). Paradot is still on Google Play, rated Mature 17+ (Google Play). We missed this at the time, and our Paradot listing has now been corrected too.

Why now? What Apple has said

Apple has not named any of these apps. On October 16, 2026 it published stronger App Review Guidelines. Content moderation rules now “explicitly cover nonconsensual intimate imagery — including imagery generated using AI tools,” and apps that add features after review “are subject to removal from the App Store” (Apple Developer). Apps that host content made by other people must filter objectionable material and let people report and block.

That is the rulebook, not an explanation. We do not know whether Apple removed these apps or the developers pulled them. Soulplay, ChaChat and HiWaifu all host characters made by other people, and Soulplay’s Google Play listing is titled “Soulplay - Spicy AI Roleplay”. We found no statement from Studio Dopa, Myna Labs, HiWaifu or Apple, and the Soulplay and ChaChat websites carried no notice on October 31. If you see a reason given elsewhere, treat it as a guess.

This matters most for people who used these apps for company, not just stories. A companion app can vanish from the store with no warning, even while it still runs. Whatever app you move to, Duple included, keep your own notes on your companion’s name, personality and the details you care about, so you can rebuild them if an app ever disappears.

If you pay through the App Store

A subscription bought on iPhone is an Apple subscription. It keeps renewing unless you cancel it, whether or not the app is in the store. Check or cancel it in iPhone Settings → [your name] → Subscriptions. Deleting the app does not stop billing.

Looking for something similar?

Our best AI character chat apps guide compares nine character apps that were still on the App Store on October 31, 2026.

• Instead of Soulplay (group stories and community characters): Saylo lets you build characters and story worlds. See our best AI roleplay apps and Talkie alternatives guides.
• Instead of HiWaifu (huge community library): Character.AI has a large library of characters and stories, and Emochi does interactive stories. See our Character.AI alternatives.
• Instead of ChaChat (build an AI partner): Duple and EVA AI let you shape a companion of your own. See our best AI girlfriend apps guide.

We will update this post if any of the companies or Apple says more, or if any app returns to the App Store.