TRADINGVIEW – Tinder says its engineering team is releasing products twice as fast as it was a year ago. More than 90% of new code is AI-generated, with every submission reviewed by two engineers. The company has also reduced bots and bad actors by more than 60%. Tinder is updating its recommendation system to respond to changes in user behaviour within seconds, instead of taking up to four hours.
WIRED – Tinder is rolling out Face Check to existing users in the US and UK after making it mandatory for new users in October 2025. The company said fake accounts, scams and spam made up 98% of its moderation actions last year. Tinder is also testing optional iris verification through World ID. Security experts say these checks still cannot confirm that someone is trustworthy.
LINKEDIN – Tinder has launched Double Date Island, its first TikTok reality series, in partnership with TikTok and ITV Studios. The show is based on Tinder’s Double Date feature, which allows friends to match as pairs. It features 32 best-friend pairs from eight countries competing in a villa in Portugal. Their double dates are rated, with one pair from each country advancing to the Global Final. New episodes will be released daily on TikTok.
THE GUARDIAN – Bumble has removed its requirement for women to initiate conversations and is preparing to replace swiping. The company is developing an AI matchmaking assistant called Bee, while Tinder is testing its AI-powered Chemistry system and Grindr is becoming an “AI-first” platform. Startups including Fate are also replacing profile browsing with AI-led matching. Researchers argue that AI may not address users’ underlying concerns about poor matches, monetization practices, privacy and the growing use of AI communication. They suggest that better moderation, clearer policies and greater user control could be more effective than adding AI to the existing dating-app model.
FORTUNE – Dating apps are rethinking swiping as declining user numbers and frustration among Gen Z put pressure on the established model. Match Group’s paying users fell 6% to 13.3M, Tinder’s MAU dropped 7%, and Bumble’s paying users declined 16.4% to 3.2M. Researchers argue that swiping keeps users engaged but often produces burnout, unanswered messages, and conversations that never become dates. Companies are therefore focusing on fewer, more relevant matches and offline experiences. Bumble is testing Plans, an app for curated events, while Tinder expects to expand its Events feature from 10 cities to 75 by the end of 2026. Tinder said 71% of eligible users aged 18 to 24 used Events during its LA pilot, with more than half returning the following week.
IRISH INDEPENDENT – Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC) plans to fine Tinder between €8M and €11M following a GDPR investigation launched in 2020. The probe concerns user-data retention, transparency, and the handling of access and deletion requests. Match Group has recorded a $9.1M provision but says it will vigorously defend against the findings. The DPC is likely to finalise its decision within the next couple of weeks.
MASHABLE – Tinder’s new feature, Missed Connections, is being tested in Canada and Australia. The feature shows users a weekly selection of people they crossed paths with. A text-based profile search is also being tested in Canada. It has generated tens of thousands of searches in its first few weeks. The app has also updated its recommendation algorithm for straight women, which apparently drove gains in Sparks (the number of users engaging in six-way conversations on Tinder in a given week) and Sparks Coverage (the percentage of active users who experience a Spark in a given time).
MATCH GROUP – Match Group reported signs of recovery at Tinder in Q2, with daily active user declines narrowing to 4%, the best result in ten quarters. Hinge revenue grew 22%, while users increased 13%, supported by expansion into ten new countries; the company still expects Hinge to reach $1B in annual revenue in 2027. Match Group’s total revenue slipped 1% to $853M as payer numbers fell 6%, but net income rose 36% to $171M through lower operating costs.
WALL STREET JOURNAL – New AI dating apps are offering alternatives to swiping. Amata, a chatbot-based matchmaking app, interviews users and charges about $20 to arrange a date, while Known, an AI matchmaking service supported by human matchmakers, recommends compatible partners. Volar, a now-closed AI dating app, previously tested virtual versions of users that went on simulated dates for them. Established platforms are also experimenting with AI: Grindr is developing its gAI assistant, Bumble is testing its Bee matchmaker, and Tinder and Hinge are introducing tools that help users improve profiles and start conversations.
LINKEDIN – Tinder is partnering with We Met IRL, an events company founded in 2022 that organizes in-person gatherings for singles in New York City, Washington, DC, and other locations. The companies held their first joint event this week as Tinder continues to expand its focus on offline dating experiences.