by Alex Pasykov
See full article at The Next Web
Category: Outlets – The Next Web
Bumble’s Louise Troen on Censoring Dick Pics Using AI
THE NEXT WEB – May 9 – Bumble has recently introduced AI to automatically censor unsolicited dick pics to make online dating for women a safer and friendlier space. Starting in June, users of dating apps including Bumble, Badoo, Chappy, and Lumen will have access to the AI-based tool "Private Detector." The tool, which allegedly has a 98% accuracy in spotting nudes, will warn users of an image it deems as "lewd" or offensive. "Putting women's safety first is out top priority," says Louise Troen, Bumble's VP of Internal Marketing and Communications in the UK. "We have 1000s of moderators, all around the world, looking for it. AI is built into Bumble that can monitor and find images like this."
The UK Government Is Looking to Criminalize Unsolicited Dick Pics
THE NEXT WEB – Mar 8 – The Home Office is taking preliminary steps towards criminalizing "online flashing." In its "Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG)" report, the Home Office proposed 10 commitments it believes will help protect women and girls in the UK – and it's backed with ~ £100M in funding over the next five years. By law, it's considered "indecent exposure" to flash your naked body on the street – and it shouldn't be excused online. In the UK, 41% of women aged 18 to 36 have reportedly received non-consensual sexual images.
Scam Victims Warn Fake Accounts Will Ruin Facebook’s Dating Site
THE NEXT WEB – Aug 17 – Kathy Kostrub-Waters and Bryan Denny are spending some of their free time finding fake accounts on Facebook. They regularly present Facebook with their findings, and each time are disappointed to find Facebook hasn't changed their approach. Says Denny: "The reality is this isn't my job or Kathy's. So I get really tired of 'Hey, thanks for the work – keep it up.' I'm like no, damnit, it's your job to do this." Denny, a retired member of the Armed Forces, is apparently a popular target for scammers, who steal photos of his attractive mug and use them to construct fake profiles on dating sites and Facebook. He found hundreds of Facebook profiles bearing his photo and those of his son. Now consider Facebook's intention to start a dating site. Various people from groups dedicated to finding and warning others about scam profiles, speaking with Huffington Post, called that idea "madness" and "a train wreck waiting to happen."
by Rachel Kaser
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Does Facebook Know Enough About Us To Play Cupid?
THE NEXT WEB – June 25 – The sheer amount of information Facebook has on us could make it a great place to find a partner. As well as knowing our friends, family and others, it also knows how much we interact with those users, the ones we talk to and who we tag the most. Arguably, it knows who we like more objectively than we do. Even though we are prone to lying in our status updates and Instagram feeds, there's still a lot Facebook can tell about us that may help in its quest to match us up. In a study of how people's 'likes' could form a view of their personality, it only took a computer looking at 10 likes to understand a person better than their colleagues, 70 to outperform a friend and 150 to beat a close family member. Facebook data can create more realistic pictures of someone's personality than self-reporting surveys.
by William Hanmer-Lloyd
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Dating App Happn Wants To Become The Pokémon Go Of Love
THE NEXT WEB – Feb 14 – Thanks to real-time geo-localization, Happn allows users to connect with the people they've crossed paths with. If the feeling is mutual, they have a "crush" and can start messaging. "We're the sidekick of serendipity," said proudly Didier Rappaport – the CEO and founder of Happn.
Q: Happn has been around for 4 years. How did it change over time?
A: We never introduced major changes in the product, but this is going to change soon, very soon.
Q: What's going to change?
A: I can't reveal the details yet, but I can say that we'll massively implement artificial intelligence.
Q: It seems that matchmaking apps are more about data than dating. What’s your take on the matter?
A: Dating businesses have always also been data mines. We have huge flows of fresh data that roll-in every day.
Q: You're surely aware of the criticism that dating apps aren't careful enough with people's data. Are you concerned by this issue?
A: No. The safety and privacy of our users is the central pillar of our company and our mission. Most of our data comes from Facebook and is already publicly shared.
Q: What has been the biggest challenge to the growth of Happn?
A: The high marketing expenses. But we're really close to profitability. It’s a 2018 goal.
CoffeeMeetsBagel Shows Singles Care Less About Valentine’s Day Than Ever
THE NEXT WEB – Feb 4 – The dating app Coffee Meets Bagel has recently conducted a survey of its users to see what they were planning for Valentine's Day. Of the 654 respondents, 235 said they considered Valentine's Day "just another Hallmark holiday."” 474 said they felt no pressure to date on Valentine's Day, and 295 said they didn’t plan on celebrating.
by Rachel Kaser
See full article at The Next Web
SXSW Interview With Grindr CEO
THENEXTWEB – Mar 16 – Bootstrapped with no VC funding and fueled by word-of-mouth growth, Grindr is a great example of an company that has made a big impact on its own terms. Grindr CEO Joel Simkhai was interviewed by Martin Bryant Editor-in-Chief at The Next Web at SXSW. You can listen to the conversation below.
Couples App “Between” Is Launching An E-commerce Store
THE NEXT WEB – May 14 – Between, an app from South Korea for couples to share their moments in a private social network, has launched a gift shop. Couples will receive mobile coupons to redeem their presents. Between claims 7.3M users worldwide.
OKCupid Partners With Coinbase For Accepting Digital Currency
THE NEXT WEB – Apr 16 – OKCupid is now accepting payments in the digital currency and is the newest addition to the companies to support Bitcoin — which includes Reddit, Mega, WordPress.com, Expensify and others. OKCupid has partnered with Y-Combinator-backed Coinbase, a platform for buying and selling the digital currency, to expand its payment options.