The Problem Isn’t Tinder’s New AI but the Dating Apps Themselves

It was inevitable. After signing a deal with OpenAI in 2024, Tinder is now featuring AI characters complete with generated personalities. It’s not to replace a potential date, but act as the punching bag for your pick-up lines and desperate pleas for a real relationship. Only using it quickly reminded me of how dating apps have limited our ability to make connections organically, and instead left us relying on an algorithm to serve us humans like Instagram Reels. On April 1, Tinder launched “The Game Game,” an AI-fueled meet-cute simulator that’s supposed to help you practice your rizz before you actually enter the dating world. Unlike an app like Character.ai, which lets users create custom chatbot to talk to, The Game Game emulates a “meet cute” scenario with random AI-generated, conventionally attractive people. Even though it launched on April Fools, the game is real. You can access it by clicking on the Tinder icon in the top left corner of the app. Tinder invited me to test it ... Read full article.