Claude Code Bug Replaces German Umlauts with ASCII Substitutes
Bug Details and Timeline
Since December 2025, Claude Code and the Claude.ai app have been randomly replacing German umlauts with ASCII substitutes. The affected characters are:
- ä → ae
- ö → oe
- ü → ue
- ß → ss
The bug is reportedly getting progressively worse each day. Even when users explicitly tell Claude Code to use umlauts, the fix only works for about 2 minutes before the system reverts back to ASCII substitutes.
Support Channel Failures
The user has attempted multiple support avenues over 3+ months with no resolution:
- GitHub issue filed December 13, 2025 (https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues/14131) — no Anthropic employee response, only automated bots with wrong labels
- Multiple /feedback and /bug reports
- Multiple Intercom support tickets — all resulting in automated responses or generic login troubleshooting templates unrelated to the issue
- Direct email to [email protected] — same result, generic login template sent twice despite the issue having nothing to do with login
The user is a paying Max subscriber who was promised Priority Support within one US business day, a promise that has been repeatedly broken.
Community Impact
Many other users are reportedly affected by this issue. The original poster encourages others experiencing the same problem to comment on the GitHub issue to increase visibility.
📖 Read the full source: r/ClaudeAI
👀 See Also
AI Mania: From Tulips to Tokens — A Critical Look at the AI Hype Cycle
Sean Helvey draws parallels between tulip mania and today's AI boom, questioning AI's true intelligence, transparency, and externalities. Touches on energy costs, data center expansion, and the need for data sovereignty.
Claude Code: Feedback Honeypot Overrides Privacy Opt-Out — Users Report Session Transcript Trap
Anthropic's Claude Code now prompts users to allow session transcript review — pressing 'n' for no logs 'Thanks for your feedback' and may still train models. Dismiss key behavior is unclear.
The Open Claw Overnight Test: A Leap Forward in AI Automation
The Open Claw Overnight Test demonstrates the potential of AI-powered coding agents, transforming overnight processing into seamless automation. Explore the key takeaways and discussions from the r/openclaw community.
LeMario: Training a JEPA World Model on Super Mario Bros — Technical Walkthrough and Postmortem
Benjamin Bai reproduces LeWorldModel's JEPA architecture from scratch and trains it on Super Mario Bros. The model predicts five-step futures but fails at long-horizon planning — a detailed technical postmortem.