CNN
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A personalized chatbot will date other chatbots on your behalf. An AI concierge answers questions about possible matches. Advanced algorithms predict compatibility more accurately than ever before.
Dating apps are undergoing a major transformation.
While much of the tech industry is grappling with how to integrate artificial intelligence into their products, dating companies are exploring how this technology could revolutionize the way people connect and meet online. We are considering whether there is any gender.
At an investor day last week, executives from Match Group, the parent company of Match.com, Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid, Our Time, and others, laid out plans to use AI to improve the user experience and build better connections. hinted.
Hinge CEO Justin McLeod outlined how the company intends to fully embrace AI next year. More personalized matches, smart algorithms that adapt to you and understand you better over time, and AI coaching for those who are struggling with dating.
“AI is not a panacea when it comes to the deeply personal issue of love, but an expert-guided journey through the dating app experience from a do-it-yourself platform is much better for daters. results and much better value,” he told investors.
Machine learning has been working quietly behind the scenes in dating apps for years, most notably behind match recommendation engines, but advanced AI is making matchmaking more effective and creative. may improve matchmaking.
It’s already starting to play a bigger role. For example, Tinder uses AI to help users choose the best profile picture. Meanwhile, Bumble’s recently enhanced “For You” roundup uses advanced AI to deliver four profiles each day, hand-picked based on user preferences and past matches.
Bumble also uses AI in safety features like Private Detector, an AI-powered tool that blurs explicit images, and Deception Detector, which identifies spam, fraud, and fake profiles. Similarly, Match Group offers tools such as the “Are you sure?” button. To detect harmful language and “Is this bothering you?” to prompt users to report inappropriate behavior.
But these forms of AI only scratch the surface of the possibilities. “There is tremendous opportunity for innovation in the dating app market,” Bumble CEO Lydiaan Jones told CNN.
“In building AI, as in all of our other endeavors, we will continue to champion women and build the next chapter that puts women first,” she said. “We will continue to invest in our current models as we find new ways for people to build relationships, and we see a future where AI will help facilitate this.”
Liesel Shalabi, an associate professor at Arizona State University’s Hugh Downs School of Human Communication, said the dating industry is still in the “very early stages” of AI adoption.
“While the platform is still exploring its role in the online dating experience, it truly has the potential to transform the sector.”
It’s also because the dating industry is ripe for change, she argued. Tinder made waves when it introduced the swipe mechanism in 2012, and it has been widely adopted ever since. But the app hasn’t changed much since then, despite growing user burnout and calls for smarter ways to connect. About 46% of Americans have had a very or somewhat negative experience with online dating, according to data from the Pew Research Center.
“It feels like the right time for something new and different to happen, and that could happen with AI,” Shalabi said.
Concierge and wingman date
The potential for integrating more AI into your apps is huge. Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd has previously said that she envisions AI acting as a dating concierge, helping users navigate matches, set up dates, and respond to messages. Ta.
Startups like Volar and Rizz are already experimenting with chatbots to help respond to messages. On Rizz, users upload screenshots of conversations they’re having on other dating apps, and the platform helps them craft witty replies. (Volar, a standalone dating app that trained and automatically responded to other chatbots based on user preferences, shut down in September due to lack of funding.)
The concept of a chatbot dating on your behalf may seem strange, but focusing on compatible matches could reduce tedious early-stage communication, says Sharabi. he said.
“By incorporating AI into the platform, we have the potential to help people meet people faster and find a better match,” Shalabi said.
She also thinks dating apps need to address users’ concerns about whether they’re talking to a real person. After all, some users already rely on AI through services like ChatGPT to help them create profiles and respond to messages.
Dating platforms may add some tools directly to their apps in creative and controlled ways. For example, an AI dating coach can explain compatibility scores, suggest icebreakers, and navigate user conversations.
At Match Group’s investor day, Hinge’s McLeod announced plans to use years of insights from the dating process to build “the world’s most knowledgeable dating coach.”
“Dating isn’t easy. Many people who use the app don’t get their first match and don’t know why. Maybe it’s because of the photo or not getting enough likes. Or maybe it’s because it takes too long to get matched and ask someone out on a date. “A dating coach can step in with personal suggestions,” he said.
Shalabi said the concept of an AI dating coach “makes a lot of sense.” That’s because when looking for love, it’s not uncommon to go out with friends or colleagues, so you have someone to bounce ideas off of.
“That doesn’t happen on dating apps,” she added. “It’s like putting the comradery that you used to do when meeting face-to-face, but bringing it to the digital dating experience.”
Hinge is also working on more personalized algorithms that collect more information from users, asking them to describe what they value most and understanding what’s working and what’s working on the platform. Ask them to provide feedback on what isn’t working.
“Imagine a future where daters tell our algorithms in their own words what’s important to them and what they’re looking for,” McLeod said. “As a result, we will be able to match them with a level of accuracy that was not possible before. … This is just a starting point.”
McLeod said Hinge is already seeing more matches and subscription renewals among an early test group due to improved AI algorithms. We plan to roll this out worldwide in March.
But Shalabi said no company has emerged as the clear leader in AI dating yet.
“They’re still figuring it out,” she said. “But one thing is clear: Online dating is going to change a lot in just a few years.”
