Features

Muzz dating app, formerly MuzzMatch, has had a hard time growing an active userbase in India, despite the country having the third largest Muslim population in the world. Also, nearly 50% of India’s population is under 25 years, making the country the second-largest market for dating apps (after the United States).

Muzz is marketed as a matchmaking app rather than a dating app for Muslim singles, because as founder Shahzad Younas told Rest of World: ““We don’t date. We get people married.” The app however, is encountering safety problems concerning fake accounts and bots, a problem for all dating apps. But there are more issues to consider for a marriage-minded app in India, because dating app users have had their photos taken and used for other purposes.

One such high-profile incident happened in 2022, where a group worked to scrape photos of prominent Indian Muslim women and uploaded them to a dating app “listing them at ‘auction’ with an attempt to humiliate them,” according to Rest of World. This kind of behavior could become more common without specific protocols and safety measures in place.

In time for students headed off to college, Tinder has released a new safety guide to help them navigate dating on campus.

According to Campus Safety Magazine, Tinder sees the highest number of new eighteen-year-old users in August and September when the school year begins. And while freshmen are excited to meet new people and date, dating violence is common on college campuses. Tinder wanted to take a proactive step and provide some guidance.

Tinder’s “Campus Crush Dating Guide” provides advice to help users meet people and date more safely, including knowing their self-worth and what they want from dating. The app points out the large number of users on college campuses, and encourages users to write complete bios, post at least four photos, and list their interests (with an emphasis on music preferences), so that they can attract the right matches.

This summer, young daters have been more interested in tossing aside geographical boundaries and looking for love in faraway places. They are also looking for short-term romance that comes to an end after the vacation is over.

According to Mashable, 33 percent of Bumble users are embracing “wanderlove” - the prospect of pursuing love interests outside of where they live. And young singles want to experience adventure and romance in a new place. Travel is the top priority for these daters, and if they can have an “expirationship” - a little bit of romance along with it that can end when they finish their travels, even better.

Part of this growing trend is due to post-pandemic work models, where many people were able to move to where they wanted to live, rather than stay where their workplace is located. Young people with no kids are especially interested in traveling, rather than putting down roots in a specific place.

A fast-growing percentage of Grindr users are turning to the gay dating app not to find a relationship, or even a hookup. Instead, they are looking to network for career advancement.

According to The Advocate, Grindr said almost a quarter of its members use the app to network, and that a spokesperson for the company said it’s an “effective tool” for those looking to connect with other gay men for both personal and professional relationships.

Traditionally, singles have avoided mixing work and personal relationships over dating apps, especially when they could get matched with a boss or co-worker. But now, according to Grindr’s own survey of its users, “approximately 25 percent say that one of their key activities on Grindr is to network,” according to The Advocate. A Grindr spokesperson told Business Insider in an email: “We know people use our app to meet new people in their area and in new towns, and we also have plenty of anecdotal evidence of people making connections that lead to professional opportunities like jobs.”

Image: eHarmony

eHarmony announced that it is adding an expanded list of genders for its members to choose from, aiming to give them a more inclusive experience. The company worked in partnership with GLAAD (Gay and Lesbian Awareness ) to develop the new updates.

Users will now be able to choose from an expanded list of genders, and during the registration process, they will be asked what gender best describes them to best match them with potential dates. Members will also be given more opportunity to talk about and add more detail about their gender when they complete the “personal information” form in the process. Users can also choose to display their gender on their profile, according to GLAAD's website.

Members will be able to list their gender preferences when it comes to matches as well, including whether they are seeking men, women nonbinary, or any combination of these.

Match Group has hired a new Vice President of Innovation, a role that will direct the use of AI over its suite of apps.

Mark Kantor comes from his previous role as head of growth at Zynga, and co-founded startups like Yellowbrick and Grafitti, according to Tech Crunch. He will lead a team of engineers and product designers in harnessing AI technology for new features. According to an internal memo received by Tech Crunch, the new team is called ASL, which stands for Art x Science Lab, but is also a reference to an online pickup line (“age, sex, location”).

AI has been a tool that dating apps have incorporated in various ways, including in algorithms to better understand user preferences when delivering potential matches. Now with tools like ChatGPT, daters are using AI for profile-writing and messages, so dating app companies like Match Group are seeing opportunity.