Communication

Dating app Bumble has launched Healthy Queer Dating Guide for its users to promote kindness and encourage an inclusive dating experience on the app.

The Guide covers a range of relevant topics, including how to start an online conversation with someone new when you are feeling nervous, and how to set clear boundaries when you connect. According to Hindustan Times, the Guide also offers advice for how to communicate that a match has misgendered you in the early stages of dating.

First date advice (and navigating to a second date), kindness in conversations, and how to approach dating when you prioritize your own emotional needs are included among other topics, according to Indulge Express. The Guide also offers important advice on how to deal with rejection, something every dater experiences.

Bumble is testing its BFF (Bumble for Friends) service as a standalone app for finding friends, according to Mashable.

Bumble BFF and Bumble Bizz (for career networking) have been features on the main Bumble dating app for a long time, and now Bumble intends to spin BFF off into its own entity. The new app is being tested in the UK and select Asian markets, according to confirmation from Bumble. And according to Tech Crunch, though Bumble couldn’t confirm specific countries where it’s being tested, the app is also available in Australia, New Zealand and Philippines for both Androids and iPhones.

Bumble BFF expected to launch in the U.S. this summer.

It’s likely that the dating app’s Bizz service will be a standalone app down the line as well. But for now, the company is focusing on its BFF service, since about 15 percent of Bumble’s active monthly users utilize the feature.

Tinder has added new profile stickers to celebrate Pride month, and as young LGBTQIA+ daters become the fastest-growing user base on its platform.

Young users can now add “My First Pride” as a sticker to help them connect with others attending Pride-related events, according to The Advocate. “Came Out Online” is another sticker specifically honoring younger Tinder users who first came out on a dating app or social media platform.

In fact, Tinder’s new Future of Dating Report found that 54 percent of LGBTQIA+ singles between the ages of 18 and 25 come out on dating apps first, and to friends and family later. The study also found that young singles say their sexual identity and gender identity have become more fluid over the past three years.

Bumble is expanding its suite of apps with the acquisition of Official, an app that helps people improve their relationships through check-ins and date planning, according to Fast Company.

Networking and friendship building are already part of Bumble’s platform, and Official adds to the mix to encourage couples to better communicate and set intentions in their relationships.

Official will remain a standalone app for now instead of being folded into Bumble’s app, though CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd told Fast Company that there were opportunities for the two platforms to “collaborate.” Couples who met on another app will also be able to sign up for Official, which means joining Bumble’s userbase. With the addition of Official, Bumble is seizing on an opportunity to keep people on its platforms even after they’ve met and formed a relationship.

Tinder has announced the launch of its new Photo Verification feature, which includes an AI-powered update and video selfie requirement.

According to Tech Crunch, the new Photo Verification is to help users prove they aren’t a bot or catfisher on the dating app by taking video selfies that can be analyzed by AI against their photos. Previously, users were required to take a selfie as instructed by the app to compare against a profile photo, but Tinder is strengthening its process even further by requiring the video selfie, so there is no room for error.

The process for verification requires the user to complete a series of videos responding to questions or prompts, and then the AI tool scans the videos and compares them to the photos the user wants to include in their profile to see if they match. The AI tool uses 3D mapping of facial geometry for both the video and photos, according to Tech Crunch.

Image: Bumble

Dating app Bumble is dipping into politics again, this time in the U.K. The company has joined forces with Grazia magazine, UN Women UK, and celebrity Amy Hart to encourage legislators to change the proposed Online Safety Bill (OSB), which deals with the issue of cyberflashing.

The proposed bill’s language includes determining whether the cyberflasher (the person sending unsolicited nudes to someone without their knowledge or consent) had harmful intent, which Bumble says would be difficult to prove. Critics say that this also gives a lot of room for the accused to claim they sent these images as a “joke,” according to AOL.com.

In March, Bumble issued a press release acknowledging the milestone that the UK government agreed to make cyberflashing a criminal offense under the OSB. In the same release, they advocated that “to drive societal change, any new law must be based on non-consent.” The company argued that instead of focusing on the intent of the sender, the law should be focused on whether or not the recipient gave prior consent.