“Used it for my bio lol,” says another. Artificial Intelligence, or AI, so far was always used by the app’s side of things to enhance user engagement. But thanks to AI chat platforms, the already-daunting task of finding love online has been further complicated, as people have found their way to these tools to write the perfect opening line, their bios, and even their messages. The idea of a profile on a dating app is about giving someone a peek into your personality – however dull, cool, or plain Jane that might be. The whole purpose of being ‘who you are’ is royally lost with these tools, yet some might argue that it could give an introvert or someone not too good with their words a chance to express themselves better.
In 2023, Mashable reported that dating app OkCupid started experimenting with asking users matching questions generated by ChatGPT. The app’s global head of communications Michael Kaye asked ChatGPT what questions to ask on a dating app and what questions to ask when dating, and the chatbot sent a flurry of prompts. Kay told Mashable that daters who think ChatGPT is a life saver get almost 40 per cent more matches on OkCupid “than those who think it’s too big brother”. It was also reported that 31 per cent of Gen Z daters on OkCupid don’t think that using AI to create a profile or message others on dating apps is a violation of trust, while the app found that 52 per cent of users see using AI on profile photos as a turn-off, and only six percent say it’s a turn-on – with 43 per cent unsure. 47 per cent users were unsure whether they’d continue dating someone who admitted to first communicating using AI. Thirty-four percent said they wouldn’t continue the relationship, and 18 per cent said they would.
Dating apps, on the other hand, are doing their own due diligence, and are using AI to try to give better experience to the swipers. Lucille McCart, APAC Communications Director of Bumble, shares that in February, Bumble launched Deception DetectorTM, its latest AI feature crafted to help identify and take action on fake profiles, scams, and spams. In 2019, Bumble also launched Private DetectorTM, a feature that automatically blurs lewd images and gives you the control to consent to or decline the photo – in response to a member survey that found that one in three women had received unsolicited lewd images.
Ravi Mittal, founder and CEO of dating app QuackQuack, corroborates the usage of AI to create a better bio, but doesn’t believe its users taking AI’s assistance to chat with matches. QuackQuack, in fact, has launched a Human Matchmaker Model, aims to combine technology and human expertise to provide the app’s paid users with tips, tricks, and a more comprehensive support in finding the perfect match. This Human Matchmaker Model will assist users in crafting the perfect profile, offer detailed online and offline dating tips and safe ways to approach matches, and help find personalised match suggestions.
“AI has been a great addition for us in terms of safety checks and monitoring fake and spammy profiles. Users have been taking help of AI to enhance their profiles. And while it’s way too early to see any negatives, user-end level AI usage for such scenarios is nascent but we should see a surge in the coming years, if not months and that is when we will be able to better comment on this,” Mittal concludes.
While AI can help enhance safety in an increasingly unsafe online world, maybe using technology to appear ‘smarter’ is where we can draw the line? The world though, at present, is divided on this sentiment.
Source: AI Is Changing The Rules Of The Dating Game | Grazia India
