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Backyard AI Is Shutting Down: How to Save Your Characters and Where to Go Next

Backyard AI has shut down: request your data archive by 4 November 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific and download it before 6 November 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific, or it's gone. Backyard's cloud features and new accounts are already closed. Once you have the archive, drop it into Teasa, a free AI character chat and interactive Story app that runs in any browser and on iPhone, Android and Windows: your characters and your chats come across, and you can keep talking to them tonight.

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In this guide

Backyard AI shutdown dates

What When What to do
Cloud features and new accounts Already closed Nothing to request; sign in only to get your data
Request your data archive By 4 November 2026, 11:59 p.m. Pacific Sign in at backyard.ai and request the archive now
Download your data Before 6 November 2026, 11:59 p.m. Pacific Download the archive and keep a copy on your computer and a cloud drive
Refunds for unused paid time Handled separately from the download Store purchases follow Apple's or Google's refund process

These dates come from Backyard's own website and documentation, checked on 31 October 2026.

How to download your Backyard AI data

  1. Go to backyard.ai and choose Sign in to download your data.
  2. Request your archive. Do it today: the request window closes on 4 November, two days before the downloads stop.
  3. When it's ready, download the .zip and save a copy somewhere safe. Keep the .zip as it is: that's the file you drop into Teasa.
  4. To see what you saved, open a copy and read README.txt. Backyard explains the archive's contents there and in byaf/index.json.

What's in the Backyard archive

Backyard says the archive holds structured JSONL data, plus BYAF files for single-character chats in a compatible format. Older images that are no longer available are listed in unavailable-media.jsonl, so check that file for any character art you want to save another way. Keep the whole archive: Teasa reads the BYAF files inside it directly, so there's nothing to unpack or copy by hand.

Bring your Backyard characters to Teasa

Teasa reads Backyard's own archive format, so your characters come across whole. Open Bring a character, choose Upload a file and drop in the archive .zip you downloaded, or any character's .byaf file. Pick a character from the list and Teasa fills in every field:

In Backyard On Teasa
Display name and name Name and alias
Persona Description, or private settings when it is long
Scenario narrative Private settings
First message The opening message, with other scenarios' first messages as more openings
Example messages and lore Sample lines and private settings
Character image The Character's portrait

Review the fields, change anything you like and save. The Character is private to you, ready to DM, to cast in a Story or to publish when you choose. How do I bring my Backyard AI characters and chats to Teasa? walks through each step.

Bring your Backyard chats to Teasa

Open the chat import and drop in the same archive. Each character you chatted with comes back as a private Story that picks up where your latest chat left off, with your earlier chats remembered as the story so far, and every line kept as yours or the character's the way Backyard marked it. Teasa reads the files in your browser and sends only the chats you choose.

Keep chatting on Teasa

Teasa gives you characters with something to do and someone to remember you:

  • Free to start: your first 20 turns of any Story need no account, and DMs with any Character are free and unlimited on a free account.
  • Memory you can see: a Memory panel lists what's been saved about you, lets you forget any of it and pause collection.
  • Stories with somewhere to go: quests, relationship milestones you earn with each Character, and a history you can branch and return to.
  • Four chat styles: Hojicha, free; Matcha, free every day; Earl Grey, with Teasa Pass; and Oolong, with Teasa Pass Pro.
  • Nine languages, in any browser and on iPhone, Android and Windows. No setup and no model to run yourself.

Start with one of these while your archive downloads:

  • Zeno Stokeleigh in Mafia Husband: Is He Like the Rumors?: your sister was meant to marry the feared mafia boss, so they sent you instead.
  • Oscar Kessler in The Yandere Husband: you wake in a rich stranger's bedroom, and he is set on making you fall in love with him.
  • Lucien Hart in Vampire Roommate: a thump from the attic, blood on his hands, and your new roommate couldn't be calmer about it.
  • Lionel Nash in The Husband Who Stays Cold: a ruthless CEO married you for business, and he is the one who fell first.

Open a Story, choose Enter, type the name you want to be called and write your first line.

FAQ

Is Backyard AI shutting down?

Yes. Backyard has shut down: cloud features and new accounts are closed, and you can download your data until 6 November 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific. Request your archive by 4 November 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific.

How do I export my Backyard AI characters and chats?

Sign in at backyard.ai with Sign in to download your data, request your archive by 4 November and download it before 6 November. The archive holds JSONL data and BYAF files for compatible single-character chats; its README.txt and byaf/index.json explain the contents.

Can I import Backyard AI characters into Teasa?

Yes. Drop your Backyard archive .zip or a character's .byaf file into Bring a character: the name, persona, scenario, first messages, example messages, lore and portrait come across for you to review and save.

Can I import my Backyard AI chats?

Yes. Drop the same archive into the chat import. Each character you chatted with becomes a private Story that continues from your latest chat.

What is a good Backyard AI alternative?

Teasa is free to start, runs in any browser and on iPhone, Android and Windows with nothing to install or run yourself, and gives your characters memory you can see, Stories with quests and relationship milestones, and unlimited free DMs. Compare AI roleplay apps for more options.

What happens to my Backyard subscription?

Backyard handles subscription cancellations and refunds for unused paid time separately from the data download. Purchases made through the App Store or Google Play follow Apple's or Google's refund process.

Sources

Checked on 31 October 2026.

  • Backyard AI: backyard.ai, shutdown notice with the archive request and download deadlines, archive contents and refunds.
  • Backyard AI: Start guide overview, "Backyard has shut down. Please download your data before November 6, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific."

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