MASHABLE – Archer, the gay dating app launched by Match Group in 2023, will shut down on June 17. The closure follows Match’s recent $100M investment in gay app Sniffies and signals a shift in focus within its LGBTQ+ portfolio. Archer positioned itself as a more relationship-oriented alternative to hookup apps and reached ~685K downloads in its first year, but struggled to gain meaningful scale in a market dominated by competitors such as Grindr.
MASHABLE – Hily is pushing back against the dating industry’s AI trend by promoting “Human Intelligence” (HI) instead. The move comes as apps like Bumble and Tinder invest more heavily in AI features. According to Hily’s August 2025 survey, 69% of Gen Z and 74% of millennials believe AI makes dating less authentic. More than half said they would be less attracted to someone if they thought AI had been used to create their profile. Despite this, many daters still use AI to write bios or suggest conversation starters. Hily says it will use technology where useful, but does not want AI to replace the human side of dating.
MASHABLE – Pure’s new feed is even more colorful and easy for users to express themselves in the loudest way possible. Users choose their profile’s aesthetic and color pattern with a single tap: bright pink, periwinkle, black, and more. The new redesign prioritizes one profile at a time; there’s no grid in sight. There’s a new “Mutual Turn-Ons” view. Pure wrapped up 2025 with close to $100 million in gross revenue and a 95% year-over-year increase in registrations. Revenue grew 46% year-over-year in 2025.
MASHABLE – New Tinder users in the UK must complete a facial scan to sign up, using a feature called Face Check. Users take a video selfie, which is checked against their profile photos and used to detect duplicate accounts, after which they receive a verification badge. The requirement is already in place in the U.S., Canada, Australia, India, and other regions. The rollout follows earlier verification steps, including photo, video, and ID checks, and aligns with new UK regulations such as the Online Safety Act.
MASHABLE – CasualX is a dating app focused exclusively on casual, no-strings-attached encounters, positioning itself as an alternative to platforms where users seek serious relationships. It offers standard swiping and a social “moments” feed, manual profile review to reduce fakes, and privacy features like private albums and app locks. The app targets users looking for hookups or friends-with-benefits and gained early traction with tens of thousands of users and high daily match activity.
MASHABLE – Coffee Meets Bagel’s 2025 Dating Realness Report, based on a survey of 1K U.S. daters aged 21–35, finds that most people are serious about relationships. 61% want a spouse and 31% want a long-term partner, but 93% say dating is difficult. The biggest pain points are endless swiping (54%), ghosting or unmatching (47%), and not knowing how to start conversations (43%). 80% are comfortable with AI helping with dating tasks, but 65% would be less likely to engage with someone if they knew that person used AI to write their profile or messages. Emotional connection is a must for 73%, ahead of physical attraction (63%), shared values (59%), and ambition (57%).
MASHABLE – In May, Match Group acquired HER, a dating app for queer women, nonbinary, and trans sapphics. While things have been relatively quiet since the buy-out, HER did roll out a new feature this summer called “Feelings”, which are short-term status tags like “Flirty” or “Go on a date” that appear across profiles, chats, and matches. Users can select up to three tags, each with optional notes, and these expire after 48 hours. The goal is to reduce awkward intros, clarify intentions, and make conversations feel more natural.
Curated by the Courtland Brooks team
MASHABLE – Grindr now blocks users from writing "no Zionists" in their bios, showing an error message if they try. But phrases like "no fats," "no Asians," "no Blacks," and "no Jews" are still allowed. This has raised questions about why some language is flagged while other, clearly exclusionary, terms are not. Grindr says it made the change after user complaints and is reviewing its policies. The platform has faced similar criticism before – in 2020, it promised to remove ethnicity filters but left them live for weeks.
Curated by the Courtland Brooks team
MASHABLE – Starting July 25, dating apps in the UK must implement age verification under the Online Safety Act. Feeld will use Yoti to confirm user age via phone number or selfie, without storing personal data. Tinder will require a clear face photo and may request ID if age can't be verified. Bumble says it already enforces strict age checks and uses selfie and ID verification. Hinge will scan a face photo to confirm users are 18+, storing it for up to three months, with results kept for a year. Rollouts in the U.S. and EU may follow based on regional laws.
Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team
MASHABLE – Bumble launches an in-app dating advice hub with content from dating and relationship experts. Themes include being yourself on the app, moving from the app to IRL, self-love, first dates, and connecting with others. Bumble’s press release states that this “marks a broader evolution in Bumble’s approach, blending technology with human insight.”
Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team
