Tinder is currently testing an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven feature that looks through your phone’s photo album and selects the five best photos for you profile, according to parent company Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH).
On the company’s earnings call, CEO Bernard Kim said AI can reduce some of the anxiety that comes with creating a dating profile.
“AI has really inspired our product people across the entire company to really think about ways that we can create new experiences, but also solve for key dating pain points,” Kim said during the call.
“I’ll use Tinder as an example. Sometimes, people are really excited to jump into the Tinder experience…then in that exact moment where you upload five pictures, people get generally nervous or uncomfortable, like, ‘What is the right picture that I’ve taken over the last year to make my dating profile more me?’”
“I really think AI can help our users build better profiles in a more efficient way that really do showcase their personalities,” he added.
Match is also testing how AI can improve the matching process. In the next few months, Tinder plans to debut a new feature that uses AI to “surface the right content to the right people to help improve relevancy,” according to a letter to shareholders.
Then there’s the eternal struggle of writing a bio that truly encapsulates your personality in a concise — and more importantly, attractive — manner.
“You know, some of us are gifted writers, but many of us are not,” Tinder Chief Product Officer Mark Van Ryswyk said at the Reuters Momentum event last month. “So, being able to help draw out what’s important to capture in a bio, you know, sharing something a bit more personal or maybe that’s just sharing a highlight, or just sharing what your intent ultimately is.”
In fact, a recent Tinder study that found roughly a third of members would use generative AI to help them build a profile, Van Ryswyk said.
Match CEO Bernard Kim did acknowledge the dangers of leaning too far into AI, particularly as a potential tool for catfishing, aka creating a fake profile to manipulate or even harass other users.
“We need to be really thoughtful about making sure that we’re giving the right thought to authenticity and ethical and privacy concerns,” Kim said.
To that end, Tinder has inntroduced an AI-powered verification feature that requires users to submit a video selfie to prevent bots or catfishers.
However, it’s clear AI is here to stay in modern dating.
There is one app, Teaser AI, that lets users chat with AI versions of potential matches, according to reporting from TechCrunch. Before you swipe right, you can chat with a user’s AI persona to see if you like their vibe.
Then there’s Stefan-Pierre Tomlin, a UK-based model called the “most swiped right man,” who is helping other Tinder users by using generative AI to write profiles and messages, according to reporting from the Independent.
Contact Andrew Kessel at andrew.kessel@proactiveinvestors.com
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