YOUTUBE – Muzz has launched Muzz Social, a social media platform made by Muslims for Muslims. Features include anonymous posting for sensitive topics, women-only and men-only groups, and a safe space representing Muslim values. The platform encourages freedom of speech on important topics within the Muslim community, with a 24-hour support team ensuring a respectful and halal experience.
Month: June 2024
Interview With Robyn Exton, Founder of HER
INITIALIZED BLOG – In the latest installment of "My First…" by Initialized Capital's Jen Wolf, Robyn Exton, founder of HER, shares her journey in creating the sapphic dating app. Originally named Dattch, feedback led to a rebrand as HER to better resonate with the community. Exton emphasized the importance of user feedback, adapting her branding experience to develop the app. HER started as a Grindr clone but evolved to focus on queer community connections and event discovery. Key lessons included rapid prototyping, user involvement, and evolving the product to meet broader gender and sexual identities. HER now helps over 30K people find connections.
Bumble Launches Opening Moves
STORYBOARD 18 – Bumble has introduced a new feature called "Opening Moves," allowing women to set a question for their matches to respond to, promoting engaging conversations while keeping women in control. To highlight this, Bumble launched an India-wide campaign featuring Bollywood actors Khushi Kapoor and Vedang Raina. Women can use one of Bumble's recommended Opening Moves, or craft their own. According to Bumble's research, 46% surveyed on Bumble shared that having more ways to start a conversation would make their dating app experience even better.
Hukup Is a New LGBTQI+ Dating App
STAR OBSERVER – Hukup, a new dating app, aims to create safe spaces for LGBTQI+ users. It offers features like private browsing, adjustable filters, and icebreakers. The app prioritizes safety with chat history-saving image privacy settings.
Dan’s the Man: Why Chinese Women Are Looking to ChatGPT for Love
BBC – Dan – which stands for Do Anything Now – is a "jailbreak" version of ChatGPT. It can bypass some of the basic safeguards put in place by its maker, OpenAI, such as not using sexually explicit language. And Dan is becoming popular with some Chinese women who say they are disappointed with their real-world dating experiences. Dan's creator has been identified by some media outlets as an American student, identified only by his first name, Walker. Many Chinese women have been intrigued by Dan. As of 10 June, the hashtag "Dan mode" has been viewed ~40M times on Xiaohongshu alone. Glow – a Shanghai-based app that allows users to create and interact with AI boyfriends has millions of users.
Hinge Is Narrowing Users’ Dating Pool to 8 People
Inside the Grindr App Relaunch
CITY A.M. – Grindr's app relaunch aims to expand beyond casual dating while still emphasizing hookups. Despite recent controversies and lawsuits, Grindr introduces free STI testing kits delivered to users' homes, aiming to remove barriers to testing and promote sexual health. VP of Brand Tristan Piñeiro emphasizes maintaining simplicity while adding versatility to the app's functionality. New features include the Roam feature for planning meet-ups while traveling and potential expansions into holiday booking and healthcare services.
The Top Internet Dating Reporters in 2023, According to Online Personals Watch
OPW – Each year we take a look at which reporters have received the most coverage on Online Personals Watch. Here's our rankings for 2023.
1. Anna Iovine, Mashable
2.-3. Jessica Bursztynsky, Fast Company and Sarah Perez, Tech Crunch
4. Lauren Forristal, Tech Crunch
5. Aisha Malik, Tech Crunch
Shared 6.-10. place: Emma Hinchliffe, senior writer for Fortune; Amanda Silberling, senior writer for Tech Crunch; Dana Leigh, editor at Techround; Audrey Kemp, reporter for The Drum; Harri Weber, former senior reporter for Tech Crunch, now freelancer; Aditi Shrikant, senior reporter at CNBC; Denny Jacob, reporter at Wall Street Journal; Ivan Mehta, reporter for Tech Crunch
Match Group CEO Bernard Kim Highlights the Effectiveness and Importance of Online Dating
THE FINANCIAL – Online dating is now a key way people find love, with Match Group's platforms having ~15M paid users. Despite dating complications, especially during COVID-19, interest in relationships remains high, with online dating users expected to reach 66M by 2028. Under CEO Bernard Kim, Match Group saw a 9% earnings increase in Q1-2024, highlighting the effectiveness of digital connections. While not every online dating encounter ends in a successful romance, Match Group CEO Bernard Kim emphasizes that dating apps have been proven to work, and evolving technology stands to help make even more precise and inventive matches for people moving forward.
ATLFilmParty Receives $25,000 Grant From Hinge
