The Circle Editions is a new dating app that is growing rapidly in the Middle East. Looking to disrupt the matchmaking industry in the region, the platform uses AI and authentic profiles to bring people together.
The platform’s Founder, entrepreneur Jimmy Takieddine, spoke with ArabianBusiness to explain why he created the app and how it works.
The Circle Editions harnesses AI to carefully match users based on their in-depth profiles. When a female user finds someone she’s interested in, she can freely invite them to go for a date at one of the venues partnered with the app.
When a male user wants to ask someone on a date, they must purchase a $5 ‘Gentleman’s Card’, to do so. Once a date location and time is set, it is automatically booked through the app.
For greater authenticity, users can get a ‘Video Verified’ badge by confirming their identity in a video call with the platform’s team. So far, the platform has 4,000 users across 17 countries, with expansion into Europe on the horizon.
Takieddine was inspired to create the platform as modern dating has become overly-superficial, and that the effort that users put into online dating isn’t translated into real dates.
Takieddine experimented with the idea by piloting an AI for compatibility analysis and first date planning. The algorithm curated hundreds of matches across the Middle East, with 92% leading to a second date.
In the Middle East, particularly Dubai, matchmaking is an established industry that can be too expensive for the ordinary person.
“A lot of people can’t afford matchmakers and I’m a prime advocate of using technology for people to meet each other. There shouldn’t be a middle person to make a call for me. I want you to take a call for yourself and go meet that person, see what their vibe is. You don’t need to pay someone who doesn’t know you to find you someone…”, Takieddine shared.
“We’re missing the human to human connection. I want people to spend less time on their phones and more time having conversation. I want to teach men to be gentlemen as well. I don’t want women to get abandoned at a restaurant or get ghosted,” he added.
Looking ahead, the entrepreneur hopes that the platform will acquire 15,000 users before the end of 2023. You can find out more about The Circle Editions by visiting its website here.
