BEIJING – ByteDance and Alibaba Group are pulling the plug on features that let users build and chat with AI companions, preparing for new Chinese regulations governing human interactions with artificial intelligence.ByteDance’s Doubao, China’s most popular AI chatbot, will shut down a feature on July 15 that allows users to customise their own AI personas, according to an app notification seen by Bloomberg News.The notice directed users to a separate, standalone companion app. Alibaba’s Qwen has issued a similar alert, as have other major platforms like Tencent’s Yuanbao, according to local media reports.The sudden retreat comes ahead of new Beijing...