Announcing LTR 51 With Michael O’Sullivan (Founder of HubPeople) and Marco van der Woude (Co-Founder of Breeze)

Posted on April 28, 2026

OPW – Edition 51 of the LTR (Love, Tech, Relationships) online experience will be on Wednesday, May 6th, at 12 pm (noon) EST (New York time).

In this edition, Mark Brooks will interview Michael O’Sullivan about his new book, Dating App: How to Build, Survive and Thrive in the World’s Most Human Tech Industry. The conversation will explore the realities of building and operating a dating business, from managing churn and user acquisition to navigating fraud, payments, and regulation in one of the most complex consumer tech sectors.

Later, Mark will be joined by Marco van der Woude to discuss the rapid growth of Breeze and the emergence of next-generation dating apps, with a focus on shifting user behavior, product design, and the move toward more intentional, offline-first experiences.

If you hold a full-time leadership role at an online dating, social discovery, or matchmaking company, you are welcome to join LTR events for free.

Why attend LTR?

🏠 Flexible: Attend from anywhere – no travel required.
⏰ Convenient: Live session. 90 minutes.
💰 Free: No registration fees.

See the LTR Edition 51 speakers and invite page here.

This event is kindly sponsored by HubPeople, LeadThink, and Matchmaker.com.

Email mark@courtlandbrooks.com to RSVP.

An event scene featuring a crowd in the background. Two individuals are highlighted in circular frames: Michael O'Sullivan, Founder of HubPeople.ai, and Marco van der Woude, Co-Founder & Head of Business Development of Breeze.

Ex-Eatigo CEO Joins Dating Startup Spark to Help Users Meet IRL

Posted on April 28, 2026
Logo of Spark dating app

PRESS RELEASE – Michael Cluzel, former co-founder of Eatigo, has joined dating startup Spark as co-founder. He previously scaled Eatigo to a $120M valuation and now partners with Founder & CEO Sunny Khurana to address a key gap in dating apps: turning matches into real-life meetings. Spark focuses on bookable, real-world experiences, like restaurants and events, to help users move from matching to actually meeting. The platform has launched its second version and is expanding in Southeast Asia.

See full article at PRLog

Match Invests $100M in Sniffies With Option to Buy

Posted on April 28, 2026
Logos of Match Group and Sniffies displayed together

BLOOMBERG – Seattle-based Sniffies (3m MAU) has a real-time map for gay hookups and is web-only due to app store content restrictions. The news caused Grindr shares to fall 2.5%. Match’s stock was little changed. Last Match purchased HER app. Match is winding down its existing Archer app, which it launched in 2023 to serve queer men. It will focus instead on supporting Sniffies.

See full article at Bloomberg

Madonna Partners With Grindr to Promote Her New Album

Posted on April 27, 2026
Madonna Confessions II

FAST COMPANY – Madonna is promoting her new album Confessions II by partnering with Grindr, placing her profile directly in users’ grids. Tapping it reveals a voice message, exclusive content, and a limited-edition vinyl preorder. The campaign, Grindr’s largest so far, will roll out more content over time and targets its highly engaged LGBTQ audience. 

See full article at Fast Company

Hinge Launches ‘Date Ideas’

Posted on April 23, 2026
Hinge Date ideas

HINGE – During the Date Ideas test, 54% of Hinge daters shared that the feature made them feel more confident asking someone out, and it led to more matches and dates. Ben Celebicic, Hinge’s CTO said, “date Ideas gives daters a clear, low-pressure way to signal they’re ready to meet.”

Date Ideas: daters select three Date Ideas to feature on their profile. Suitors then select one of the three activities and their availability (this week, this weekend, next week, next weekend) before liking or commenting with them. Available in U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia.

See full article at Hinge website

Mark Brooks: Nice. Next it would be nice to guide them on actual date venues, and specials. Dating can get expensive. Hinge has scale and can negotiate deals with promising new restaurants, book right into their systems, and take a small cut. That’s ‘found money’ in a tight dating market. 

The League Is Using LinkedIn’s Influencers

Posted on April 23, 2026
The League LinkedIn campaign

DIGIDAY – Last month, The League launched its first LinkedIn campaign, “Network here. Find me on The League.” It worked with 10 LinkedIn creators – founders and entrepreneurs – who were also verified The League members. It’s part of the dating app’s larger efforts to retool its media mix, exploring more niche channels outside of the usual suspects, like Meta and TikTok.

See full article at Digiday

Mark Brooks: Courtland Brooks manages advocate-influencer campaigns on Youtube, TikTok and Insta. We’ve not looked at Linkedin, but we will now. I really like that The League recruited from within their community. Great move!

Pure Has a New Feed Design

Posted on April 23, 2026
Pure dating app

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.

See full article at Mashable

Matchmaking Firm Duo Fined $810k Over Data Leak

Posted on April 23, 2026
Duo logo

KOREA TIMES – South Korea’s data protection regulator has fined leading matchmaking company Duo $810k over a January data leak of 430,000 members, including IDs, passwords, names, birth dates…, according to the Personal Information Protection Commission. An employee’s work computer was hacked, and the company failed to notify authorities for 3 days. Duo also violated its responsibility to implement data protection measures; it didn’t restrict access to its database in the event of multiple failed entry attempts.

See full article at Korea Times

Clarifai Deletes 3 Million Photos That OkCupid Provided to Train Facial Recognition AI

Posted on April 22, 2026
OkCupid data leak

TECH CRUNCH – Clarifai has now deleted 3M OkCupid photos and the AI models trained on them. This is the first clear confirmation that the data was actually used for facial recognition training. The deletion follows the FTC case against OkCupid and Match Group, which settled without admitting wrongdoing.

See full article at Tech Crunch

Milian Files for Hong Kong IPO With 74% Revenue Growth and Human-Led Matchmaking Model

Posted on April 22, 2026
Milian Technology

BENZINGA – Milian is an online matchmaking company targeting young Chinese users, preparing for a Hong Kong IPO. It reported 74% revenue growth last year, with profits tripling. The company stands out by using human matchmakers instead of AI, employing thousands of facilitators to guide conversations and support users through the dating process. This sets it apart from platforms like Tinder and Momo, which rely on algorithms.

See full article at Benzinga