Hinge CEO Justin McLeod has made it clear that the dating app will not be introducing AI-powered agents to interact on behalf of users, distancing itself from a trend that some competitors are exploring. Speaking on The New York Times’ Hard Fork podcast, McLeod emphasized that while AI can assist in the dating process, it should not replace real human interaction.
The discussion comes as other dating apps experiment with AI-driven matchmaking tools, from Grindr’s long-running wingman project to recent developments like the launch of Harmonizer. Despite these developments, McLeod stated that Hinge will not follow suit: “I think that we just have this principle at Hinge that AI should really stand behind us and not between us.”
McLeod acknowledged that AI could serve as a tool to help users navigate dating, such as providing coaching or conversation tips. However, he rejected the notion that AI could accurately replicate a person’s voice, values, and personality well enough to engage in dating on their behalf. Currently, according to McLeod, AI is “not something that we’re looking at” and isn’t an active concern outside of larger-scope projects like Match Group’s user behaviour monitoring tools.
“In a world where you’re being replaced by agents who are dating on your behalf, the journey of dating is something that I think we each need to take on our own.” he said. This implies that Hinge’s future is going to veer away from major AI overhauls and integrations, instead focusing on user-driven features or other systems that could improve the dating experience whilst keeping the human connection element alive.
