Failed 2025

    Emerge (Character AI competitor)

    Consumer AI chatbot startups face extinction when foundation model companies offer the same product for free.

    Founded → Closed

    2022 → 2025

    Funding Raised

    $35M

    Industry

    AI/Consumer

    Country

    USA

    IdeaProof AI Failure Score

    55/100
    Market Fit RiskBurn Rate RiskFounder Risk
    Market Fit Risk
    30
    Burn Rate Risk
    65
    Founder Risk
    15

    Full Analysis

    Multiple consumer AI chatbot startups raised venture funding in 2022-2023 only to find their products commoditized by ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini. Without proprietary data or distribution advantages, these "AI wrapper" companies couldn't justify their existence. Most shut down or were acqui-hired by 2025.

    Could This Failure Have Been Prevented?

    IdeaProof's AI validates market demand, competitive positioning, and business model viability in minutes — catching the exact issues that sank Emerge (Character AI competitor).