Other

Actor Rebel Wilson has announced the launch of her new dating app Fluid, designed to help daters find relationships that are about “love with no labels.”

The dating app allows users to set up their profiles without having to identify the gender or sexual preference of their potential partners, or to define themselves by a limited number of categories. According to Wilson, the app’s algorithm factors in the profiles you are spending more time on and serves up other profiles based on those, rather than filtering out potential matches according to sexual and gender preferences, allowing singles more opportunities to explore different types of relationships.

“This is the first dating app where you don’t have to actually define yourself or tick a box to say ‘I’m straight, I’m gay, I’m bisexual,’ and you don’t have to describe what you are looking for,” the Pitch Perfect star told People Magazine.

Chemistry Forever aims to “disrupt” the dating app market in India by offering AI Face Verification to curb the proliferation of fake profiles.

The new app is coming out strong in terms of security, which has plagued the dating app industry for years. According to The Hindustan Times, the app has had over 10,000 downloads in its first two months (it had a soft launch in September of last year). So far most of the profiles on the app are verified, though users have the choice to opt-in for Face Verification. 

According to the company’s website, the registration process is simple. After downloading the app, it asks the user to upload a recent profile photo (to be verified later in the process), and offers users “stars” for each completed step of the process to make their profiles more appealing and complete.

Joel Simkhai, founder popular gay dating app Grindr, has launched a new queer dating app called Motto.

In an interview with NBC News, Simkhai said he launched the new app to “course-correct” the current culture of gay dating apps. He noted that many (including Grindr) have contributed to a rise in racial discrimination among gay daters, as well as contributing to feelings of body dissatisfaction and low self-esteem in regard to body image.

Motto provides features to counteract and prevent what Skimkhai called “toxicity” on gay dating apps, including requiring users to post photos with faces instead of the popular “headless torsos” that are prominent on apps like Grindr. He’s also limiting users to perusing 10 profiles per day, so they can take their time instead of endlessly swiping.

Dateability is the latest new dating app to launch and is designed specifically for helping disabled singles connect.

The app was founded by two sisters, Jacqueline and Alexa Child, inspired by Jacqueline’s challenging time on traditional dating apps. According to the Washington Post, she recalled messaging a match she made on a popular dating app to meet for dinner or drinks (nothing strenuous) due to her connective tissue disorder, and he responded: “well, I hope you’re not planning to have children. You shouldn’t pass that on.”

He wasn’t alone in that type of abuse, according to Jacqueline. Dating apps were fraught with people who didn’t understand her disability, or worse, were hostile towards her. She had a hard time processing these conversations, and even talking with her friends and family about her dating experiences but wanted something to change.

Meet Muse Media, the parent company of dating app Snack, a video-based app designed to attract young Gen Z daters, has been sued by a thirty-seven-year-old man for age discrimination.

The plaintiff Geoffrey Taylor argued that he tried to sign up for the app but was denied due to the company’s policy of only allowing singles 35 and under on its app. He received a message referring him to try Tinder or Match, with a message that read: "100% of snack are under 35" and "looks like you're past our sell-by date."

According to Courthouse News, Taylor filed the lawsuit against the Canadian-based company in San Diego citing it violated the Unruh Civil Rights Act, which prohibits businesses from discriminating against customers based on their race, sex, religion and other protected categories. He’s seeking $4,000 in damages per violation and hopes to force Snack to loosen their rules on who can join. His lawsuit demands a jury trial and requests injunctive relief as well.

The Right Stuff, a conservative dating app backed by investor Peter Thiel, launched in late September and has already been met with controversy. More than one quarter of users give it a one-star rating, with many complaining about the lack of women using the app despite the female-focused marketing campaign.

The campaign featured several women professing to want a conservative man with their same conservative values. However, the people joining for the most part seem to be middle-aged men, and they are not finding a lot of choice when it comes to swiping. Another reason for the lack of people on the app could be its invite-only premise. New users can only join if invited by an existing member.

According to Gizmodo, January 6th is also sparking some controversy for the app, with some users posting that FBI agents have come after them after they’ve shared that they attended the rally that preceded the attack on the Capitol. The Right Stuff asks users to respond to a series of prompts when setting up their profile so matches get to know them, and one prompt says “January 6th was…” which is open-ended enough for people to write and potentially incriminate themselves.