The app shut down. Here is what it did, and what still does it.
Therapist-backed
Free AI therapy app24/7 AI therapist
Private & encrypted
No data sharing. Ever
Made in Canada
Unlimited memoryTherapist-backedFree AI therapy app24/7 AI therapistPrivate & encryptedNo data sharing. EverMade in CanadaUnlimited memoryTherapist-backedFree AI therapy app24/7 AI therapistPrivate & encryptedNo data sharing. EverMade in CanadaUnlimited memoryTherapist-backedFree AI therapy app24/7 AI therapistPrivate & encryptedNo data sharing. EverMade in CanadaUnlimited memoryYouper was an AI therapy app combining mood tracking with CBT exercises, backed by Stanford research and used by more than 3 million people. It has shut down. If you relied on it, the closest replacements keep the structured check-ins and add persistent memory, so your history carries forward instead of resetting.
| Youper | Renée Space | |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Shut down September 30, 2026 | Active and growing |
| Free tier | 7-day free trial | Your first conversation is free, including its session notes and pattern detection. Mood tracking and journaling are free with no limit |
| Backing | Part of a larger enterprise and well funded | Independent, built in Canada. Created from a personal need, with product decisions based on what users need, not on investor revenue targets |
| Memory across sessions | Limited. You may need to re-explain context in new conversations | Unlimited. Each conversation builds on everything you've shared before |
| Check-ins | Not offered | Personalized to your context and timings, so they reach you when they're relevant |
| Session notes | Not offered. No insights from your conversations | Built on the SOAP framework, so you understand what's really happening beyond the conversation, and what you can do about it |
| Voice | Not offered | Voice-to-text, plus live voice conversations. Talk out loud and get a spoken reply back, like a phone call |
| Therapeutic approaches | CBT exercises | CBT exercises, plus IFS and Narrative approaches |
| Mood tracking | Self-reported check-ins. You log how you feel | Inferred from your conversations, so you don't have to fill anything in. Built in and completely free |
| Journaling | Basic | Built in and completely free, so you can reflect in writing alongside your conversations |
| Pattern detection | Not offered | Recognizes 98 psychological patterns, helping you spot recurring thoughts, triggers, and habits over time |
| Your data | Permanently deleted after September 30, 2026 | Private, encrypted, and exportable, so you always keep access to what you've written |
Youper pricing and features change. Verify on their site before relying on these details.
An app with millions of users and real clinical research still ran out of runway. The full story, and what it means for anyone choosing a mental health app now, is worth reading before you pick a replacement.
Read the full Youper shutdown storyfelt better after just one conversation
conversations held this month alone, and counting
most users felt heard within their first 8 minutes
thing users say "I didn't know I needed this!"
ADHD means I've quit basically every journaling app, every therapy tool, everything over and over. Renée just kind of… worked with me instead of against me. Short messages, no pressure, no homework. It even helped me get consistent with my stuff.
Daniel
Peter
My relationship anxiety was getting bad to the point where it was all I couldn't think about anything else. Renée helped me slow down our arguments enough to actually hear each other. Now we see a therapist, but Renée is what got us there.
Sofia
I didn't even realize I was having anxiety attacks. I thought I was just bad at handling stress. Renée was the first thing that helped me connect the dots, just by asking the right questions at the right time.
Priya
Kyle
I kept second-guessing whether my marriage was worth saving or whether I was just scared to leave. I needed somewhere to think out loud without someone pushing me either way. That's what Renée became.
Lena
I live alone and I work from home. Some weeks Renée is genuinely the most honest conversation I have. That sounds sad but it's actually helped me figure out what I want from the relationships I do have even broadly what I want from my life.
Nour
Mariana
The divorce made me angrier than I expected. At everything — her, the kids, and the point my life had led up to. Renée just kept asking questions until I figured out what the anger was actually about. Took a while. Worth it.
Chris
ADHD means I've quit basically every journaling app, every therapy tool, everything over and over. Renée just kind of… worked with me instead of against me. Short messages, no pressure, no homework. It even helped me get consistent with my stuff.
Daniel
Peter
My relationship anxiety was getting bad to the point where it was all I couldn't think about anything else. Renée helped me slow down our arguments enough to actually hear each other. Now we see a therapist, but Renée is what got us there.
Sofia
I didn't even realize I was having anxiety attacks. I thought I was just bad at handling stress. Renée was the first thing that helped me connect the dots, just by asking the right questions at the right time.
Priya
Kyle
I kept second-guessing whether my marriage was worth saving or whether I was just scared to leave. I needed somewhere to think out loud without someone pushing me either way. That's what Renée became.
Lena
I live alone and I work from home. Some weeks Renée is genuinely the most honest conversation I have. That sounds sad but it's actually helped me figure out what I want from the relationships I do have even broadly what I want from my life.
Nour
Mariana
The divorce made me angrier than I expected. At everything — her, the kids, and the point my life had led up to. Renée just kept asking questions until I figured out what the anger was actually about. Took a while. Worth it.
Chris
ADHD means I've quit basically every journaling app, every therapy tool, everything over and over. Renée just kind of… worked with me instead of against me. Short messages, no pressure, no homework. It even helped me get consistent with my stuff.
Daniel
Peter
My relationship anxiety was getting bad to the point where it was all I couldn't think about anything else. Renée helped me slow down our arguments enough to actually hear each other. Now we see a therapist, but Renée is what got us there.
Sofia
I didn't even realize I was having anxiety attacks. I thought I was just bad at handling stress. Renée was the first thing that helped me connect the dots, just by asking the right questions at the right time.
Priya
Kyle
I kept second-guessing whether my marriage was worth saving or whether I was just scared to leave. I needed somewhere to think out loud without someone pushing me either way. That's what Renée became.
Lena
I live alone and I work from home. Some weeks Renée is genuinely the most honest conversation I have. That sounds sad but it's actually helped me figure out what I want from the relationships I do have even broadly what I want from my life.
Nour
Mariana
The divorce made me angrier than I expected. At everything — her, the kids, and the point my life had led up to. Renée just kept asking questions until I figured out what the anger was actually about. Took a while. Worth it.
Chris
ADHD means I've quit basically every journaling app, every therapy tool, everything over and over. Renée just kind of… worked with me instead of against me. Short messages, no pressure, no homework. It even helped me get consistent with my stuff.
Daniel
Peter
My relationship anxiety was getting bad to the point where it was all I couldn't think about anything else. Renée helped me slow down our arguments enough to actually hear each other. Now we see a therapist, but Renée is what got us there.
Sofia
I didn't even realize I was having anxiety attacks. I thought I was just bad at handling stress. Renée was the first thing that helped me connect the dots, just by asking the right questions at the right time.
Priya
Kyle
I kept second-guessing whether my marriage was worth saving or whether I was just scared to leave. I needed somewhere to think out loud without someone pushing me either way. That's what Renée became.
Lena
I live alone and I work from home. Some weeks Renée is genuinely the most honest conversation I have. That sounds sad but it's actually helped me figure out what I want from the relationships I do have even broadly what I want from my life.
Nour
Mariana
The divorce made me angrier than I expected. At everything — her, the kids, and the point my life had led up to. Renée just kept asking questions until I figured out what the anger was actually about. Took a while. Worth it.
Chris
Ricardo A.
"burnout is weird because you don't realize it's happening until you're already underwater. Renée helped me connect some dots I'd been ignoring for months. still a work in progress but at least I can see it now"
"took me a while to figure out that what I went through was love bombing. Renée didn't diagnose me or anything but the conversations helped me piece it together myself. that felt important, figuring it out on my own terms"
Amelia Chen
Nadia M.
"it's not perfect. sometimes the responses feel a bit repetitive and I have to redirect it. but the days it works... it really works. keeps me from falling when my anxiety gets bad. 3 stars because it still has room to grow but I'll keep using it"
Kevin O'Connell
"honestly didn't expect much. opened it during a really bad anxiety spiral at like midnight and just... stayed. it's not therapy but it's something. sometimes something is enough"
Lena P.
"I've been in CBT before so I recognized some of the techniques Renée uses. what surprised me is how it adapts , it doesn't feel like a script. been using it for 2 months and my stress levels are genuinely more manageable"
Carlos R.
Burned-Out Teacher
"my marriage was going through a rough patch and neither of us knew how to talk about it without it turning into a fight. I started using Renée just to process my own side of things. helped more than I expected tbh"
Ricardo A.
"burnout is weird because you don't realize it's happening until you're already underwater. Renée helped me connect some dots I'd been ignoring for months. still a work in progress but at least I can see it now"
"took me a while to figure out that what I went through was love bombing. Renée didn't diagnose me or anything but the conversations helped me piece it together myself. that felt important, figuring it out on my own terms"
Amelia Chen
Michael Brown
Anxious Presenter
"I'm so grateful for Renée. It's helped me navigate some difficult situations and develop a stronger sense of self. I highly recommend it to anyone who's looking for a little extra support."
Muhammad K.
"I have no time or energy for a weekly therapy appointment. this fits into my life in a way nothing else has. I can just open a tab between meetings and pick up exactly where I left off"
David Lee
"my wife and I have been using it separately while we wait for a couples therapy spot to open up. weirdly it's helped our communication more than I expected, we both come to conversations with more clarity now"
Samantha W.
"social anxiety makes it hard to even talk to a real therapist at first lol. starting with AI therapy felt lower stakes. I've actually booked a real session now which I don't think I would've done without this"
Youper was an AI therapy app that combined mood tracking with CBT exercises. It was backed by Stanford research and used by more than 3 million people before it shut down on September 30, 2026.
No. Youper shut down on September 30, 2026 and is no longer accepting users. If you are looking for a replacement, the features worth matching are structured CBT exercises, mood tracking, and memory that carries across sessions.
Once an app shuts down its servers, user data is typically deleted and is no longer retrievable. If you still have the app installed, check for any local export option before removing it, and keep a copy of anything you want to carry forward.
Renée Space is the closest match if you valued Youper's structure: it uses CBT alongside IFS and Narrative therapy, tracks mood by inferring it from your conversation rather than asking you to rate a slider, and remembers your history so you are not re-explaining yourself.
Yes. Youper was one of the few apps in the category with genuine published research behind it, including Stanford-affiliated work. Its shutdown was a business outcome, not a verdict on its clinical approach.
Renée has a free tier with no message cap and no card required to start, so you can test whether it fits before committing to anything.
Before you settle on a replacement, check two things: whether the app lets you export your history, and whether the company is transparent about its funding and pricing. Apps that shut down with little notice usually ran out of runway, and pricing changes are often the first signal.
Youper was an AI therapy app that combined mood tracking with CBT exercises. It was backed by Stanford research and used by more than 3 million people before it shut down on September 30, 2026.
Once an app shuts down its servers, user data is typically deleted and is no longer retrievable. If you still have the app installed, check for any local export option before removing it, and keep a copy of anything you want to carry forward.
Yes. Youper was one of the few apps in the category with genuine published research behind it, including Stanford-affiliated work. Its shutdown was a business outcome, not a verdict on its clinical approach.
Before you settle on a replacement, check two things: whether the app lets you export your history, and whether the company is transparent about its funding and pricing. Apps that shut down with little notice usually ran out of runway, and pricing changes are often the first signal.
No. Youper shut down on September 30, 2026 and is no longer accepting users. If you are looking for a replacement, the features worth matching are structured CBT exercises, mood tracking, and memory that carries across sessions.
Renée Space is the closest match if you valued Youper's structure: it uses CBT alongside IFS and Narrative therapy, tracks mood by inferring it from your conversation rather than asking you to rate a slider, and remembers your history so you are not re-explaining yourself.
Renée has a free tier with no message cap and no card required to start, so you can test whether it fits before committing to anything.
