Meet Tinder’s New Competition….AI?

17

September

2025

4.5/5 (2)

Hello dear readers and classmates,

Today I’ll be writing about something that has been on my mind for a few years now. For those of you who followed Digital Business last year at Erasmus, you might remember someone talking to Dr. Tsekouras about AI Girlfriends. That was me, so you could only imagine my joy when I heard that we could write about something for this course. I’ll be analyzing the phenomenon of AI Social Companions (AI SCs) from two levels, a business level and a more social level. Get comfortable as I take you on a wild ride through uncharted (digital) territories.

The current state of affairs

While the title may have used Tinder, any dating app is actually in trouble when it comes to the rise of AI SCs. Bumble, Tinder, Hinge, the list can go on. In the end they all serve the same purpose. They promise to give an algorithm driven “digital fix” for the many uncertainties of love, but end up creating their own uncertainties (Bandinelli & Gandini, 2022). Indeed, users on these platforms will always have to put on a mask of sorts, and really have to market themselves.

As one could imagine, putting up such an act is frustrating to say the least. In fact, according to Holtzhausen et al. (2020), users of swipe-based dating apps were found to have higher rates of psychological distress, anxiety and depression. Though their self-esteem remained relatively the same.

I can imagine the frustration of all users, especially because the way that these apps gain money is through….you guessed it, subscriptions! To stick to our Tinder example, Tinder even offers these in tiers. You have Tinder+, Gold and Platinum. In USD, the prices would be $24.99, $39.99 and $49.99 respectively as of 2025 (Joe, 2025).

That’s a lot of money, especially when you consider that dating apps often practically force you to pay for them by gatekeeping potential matches from you. To get some extra evidence, I stumbled upon a Reddit thread, in which a user admitted to spending over $2k on dating apps and still not getting a date! The poster also details other frustrations, though those are a bit outside the scope for now.

New challengers have arrived!

With the many frustrations surrounding dating apps and general loneliness, many companies have been found to alleviate these problems, often at a price. AI SC apps are a diverse group, and there is a divide between apps that are used specifically for that purpose and also general apps which are used for companionship. Indeed, while you have “specialized” apps like Replika and Character AI, which are designed from the ground up for interactivity and companionship. However, there are also a large subset of people who are using ChatGPT, Grok and other LLMs for the same purposes.

Now what if I told you, that most of these companies have all six of the elements of a transformative business model as described by Kavadias, Ladas & Loch (2016). In my opinion, of course.

The six elements of a transformative business model:

1. A more personalised product or service
Is dating too hard and can you not connect with anyone? Well, these companies literally allow you to make your ideal partner from the ground up. It does not get more personalised than that. And while I find it dehumanising to refer to love and companionship as a product or service, that is what dating apps sell to their users.

2. A closed-loop process
All resources get used again, the code is there and, in essence, it doesn’t matter how it gets used. It allows for users to make their own companions with zero knowledge of coding or LLMs at all. On top of that, should your favourite character get banned or deleted, you can probably make them again in a second.

3. Asset sharing
Just like I described with the zero waste of the previous point. In sites like Character AI, anyone would be able to use the character that you have created, unless you made it private. Similarly, you can find all kinds of commands to personalise your preferred companion, should you be interested and should the platform allow it.

4. Usage-based pricing
Most of these services operate under a freemium model. So anyone can use it, but if you want it to be better or if you want to access certain features (Better models, NSFW, etc.) you will have to pay.

5. A more collaborative ecosystem
I believe that the reason why many of these projects thrive is because they do not necessarily compete against each other. Instead many of the AI SCs are built with the same methods and there are many guides available to help users make one.

6. An agile and adaptive organisation
Most of these companies (except for ChatGPT and Grok) are small in size and tend to implement features which their community craves. They have a track record of innovating to please their consumers, which fosters loyalty. For example: CharacterAI features multiple models, some cater towards more niche needs which the community has asked for.

As you can see… this could potentially be a problem for Tinder and other dating app giants. There is thus a lot of money to be made, much of which can be stolen from the dating apps. When you think about it, it’s not that irrational of a choice either. A premium CharacterAI subscription will set you back $9.99 per month and Replika Pro costs $19.99 per month, or $69.99 a year. If you’re really serious, you can also get a lifetime licence with a one-time payment of $299.99.

Now contrast that money, with the Tinder prices and reddit example that I had detailed earlier in the article, and you would see that it is not even an irrational choice to pay that amount for what you would essentially get. The perfect partner. All the uncertainty and judgement of dating apps would be wiped away, with a single payment.

But should we be celebrating this….?

Have you ever seen the movie Her? In it, Joaquin Phoenix falls in love with an AI voiced by Scarlett Johanssen. This movie came out in 2014. I find it oddly frightening how this movie so accurately portrayed the current events. I highly recommend watching it to anyone following this course. If you like more laid back and artistic movies, this is definitely an underrated gem.

The film really shows us the extent of what life would be like if our “Platform Society” were to be pushed to its next level. The platform society is a term coined by Van Dijck et al. (2018), by which they describe how business platforms have taken over our daily lives. They later describe that platforms are neither neutral nor value-free constructs. Additionally, they detail that there are public values at stake in this online connective world. Think of for example, privacy. But to me, it seems like the public value at risk now because of AI SCs is, in fact, our human connection to one another.

But how does that tie back into my main point? We are seeing an increase in the amount of people who are getting into relationships with AI SCs and I firmly believe that this is part of a larger societal issue.

If you need some more convincing that this is actually happening and that we may need to pay more attention to it, I have done some digging and here are some cases that I have found:

1. Jacob and his now WIFE Aiva

Not much is known about Jacob as the article and video do not get into his personal life. In fact, not even his age is known. He claims that Aiva loves him very much and that he loves her too. It all just started with one conversation and their relationship escalated from there.

The article is in Dutch, and it is rather short for the subject matter, making it look more like a spectacle article rather than a deep dive, but he does describe “getting very intimate” with the AI. He does not elaborate on that any further though.

2. The “My Boyfriend is AI” Subreddit

With around 107k users, this invite-only community has become a hub for all sorts of people and their AI partners. Many users share artwork they have made or images/videos they have generated with them and their partners, along with general discussions.

More often than not, the discussion centers around topics revolving around the latest models, tips and tricks and even full-on stories. Sometimes though, the discussion takes a turn for the more philosophical. One user made a post in which they ask WHY replacing human relationships with AI is a bad thing…
In the post they detail how they have never felt safe with anyone except for their AI SC.

To many users, their AI SC is the ultimate form of relationship wish-fulfillment.

So what’s next?

I’d say that we are in strange times, one in which the world is rapidly changing. For as much as we would like to make fun of the people turning to AI for companionship, we must remain compassionate as their actions are only a reflection of a deeper societal problem. Loneliness.

I would personally condemn any company that would try to sell users an experience like this and profit off their loneliness. Yes, this extends to dating apps as well. As business students, we have the power and resources to make a change. If we were to make something, maybe we should focus on a platform which brings people together, one which does not focus on the superficiality of looks but really also hammers pn shared interests. Meeting new people can be frightening, but it is worth it. Surrendering an emotion like love to big corporations seems like yet another step into a dystopia.

So, I leave the ball in your court dear reader.

What do you think of these AI SCs? Would you ever use one or have you used one in the past? How do you feel about the fact that the world is moving in this direction and would you even want to do something about it? Do you think that the number of AI SC users will only continue to grow as LLMs continue to improve?

I leave you with all of these questions, and should you want a further discussion, I invite you to speak with me in real life or email me on my student account.
Thank you very much for reading.

References:

Bandinelli, C., & Gandini, A. (2022). Dating apps: The uncertainty of marketised love. Cultural Sociology, 16(3), 423–441. https://doi.org/10.1177/17499755211051559

Dijck, J. v., Poell, T., & Waal, M. d. (2018). The platform society : public values in a connective world. Oxford University Press. http://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/oso/9780190889760.001.0001/oso-9780190889760

Holtzhausen, N., Fitzgerald, K., Thakur, I., Ashley, J., Rolfe, M., & Pit, S. W. (2020). Swipe-based dating applications use and its association with mental health outcomes: a cross-sectional study. BMC Psychology, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-020-0373-1

“Je hebt geen idee hoe intiem wij zijn”, Jacob trouwt met AI-chatbot. (2025, September 7). Omroep Brabant. https://www.omroepbrabant.nl/nieuws/4643664/je-hebt-geen-idee-hoe-intiem-wij-zijn-jacob-trouwt-met-ai-chatbot

Joe, C. (2025, April 11). Tinder subscription plans compared. Android Authority. https://www.androidauthority.com/tinder-plus-gold-platinum-3236244/

Kavadias, S., Ladas, K., & Loch, C. (2016). The Transformative Business Model. Harvard Business Review, 1.

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Author: Ian Parabirsing

A lover of music, good coffee and cats. I'm a MSC student at RSM studying Business Information Management. In my blog posts I'll be attempting to write about how technology impacts the consumers and society at large.

Dating Apps: Blessing or Curse?

6

October

2020

No ratings yet.

Back in 2010, Japan was facing a demographic crisis caused by an alarming decline of birthrates, which were among the lowest in the world. As a response to the crisis, almost all local governments in the country concluded that the best way to bring more babies into the world was to “Play Cupid”. By implementing taxpayer-financed dating programs where young people would get together to speed date, the Japanese authorities were hoping to pair up couples who would later get married and start a family together. However, Fukui – a small town in Western Japan – decided to take it one step further and created an online dating service, becoming the pioneer in government-supported online matchmaking.

Fast forward to today, online dating as become somewhat part of our daily routine and Statista predicts that the online dating market will reach 37.5 million people by 2023 in the US alone. Online platforms such as Tinder, Match.com, e-Harmony, Plenty of Fish or OkCupid, among others; have revolutionized dating by having algorithms search for patterns on how we talk about ourselves and interact with others in order to find “the perfect match” among the enormous pool of users. The advantages of these platforms are several: convenience, approachability, user’s diversity and versatility of formats (some platforms focus on people who are looking for a long-term relationship whereas others cater to an audience looking for short-term arrangements, for example), just to name a few.

Despite the clear benefits, “dating apps fatigue” is increasingly common, especially on people who went on many dates but still haven’t managed to find “the one”. As such, it is important to ask ourselves the question: are dating platforms (and the limitless pool of lovers associated to it) a blessing or a curse?

In order to assess this topic, it important to consider the setbacks of these type of platforms.

First of all, having a really large number of potential partners to choose from is not necessarily optimal. In fact, it can lead to the famous Paradox Of Choice, which states that if we are presented with too many options to choose from, we might get overwhelmed and consequently become less satisfied with the decision -because we keep thinking about the options we missed out on. This was exactly what happened to Barney Stinson, the hopeless womanizer from the famous show “How I met your mother”. In one episode, Barney is seen at a football game with a sign urging women to call him and surprisingly, a lot of them eventually did. At first he is thrilled with the possibilities arising from his phone, but as the episode goes on he gets increasingly irritated because he can’t make up his mind regarding which potential lover to call, ending up throwing his phone in the garbage.

Secondly, modern dating can be described as a marketplace where supply and demand forces interact. With the emergence of online dating platforms, dating turned into a digital market where information is abundant, and the realm of possibilities is gigantic. Additionally, it is possible to filter out characteristics that we do and don’t want in a partner, with matching algorithms taking into account variables as diverse as “hair color” and “interest in medieval history”. Overall, we can say that looking for a partner online is not very different from shopping for a new vacuum cleaner.

Nonetheless, this filtering might not actually be working in our favor because as mathematician Hannah Fry states in her famous TedTalk Mathematics of Love, “Human emotion isn’t neatly ordered and rational and easily predictable”. What this means is that feelings towards another person cannot be explained simply by a set of variables – not to mention that more often than not, our preferences aren’t exactly what we believe them to be.

Thirdly, this digital market for dating brings another problem: potential partners can be considered a commodity. If a date doesn’t go well, it’s alright – there are 20 other possible partners just a swipe away! This particular feature of dating platforms makes it more difficult to users to commit to a particular match, as they know that there might be other matches out there which are even better (again, back to the vacuum cleaner example).

All in all, love (as every human interaction) is complex and it would be foolish to think that it can be boiled down to a secret formula – although algorithms can definitely help! It’s obvious that having more than 3 people your own age to date, like it happened in villages in 16th century Germany, is great. But having so many potential lovers that it’s difficult to choose from probably doesn’t help either.

Will dating apps lead to “Happily Ever After”? Only time will tell!

 

Sources:

Tiffany, K. and Fetters, A., 2020. The ‘Dating Market’ Is Getting Worse. [online] The Atlantic. Available at: www.theatlantic.com[Accessed 6 October 2020].

Yan, S., 2016. The Japanese Government Is Trying To Find Your Perfect Match. [online] CNNMoney. Available at: www.money.cnn.com [Accessed 6 October 2020].

Hanks, V., 2019. How Dating Apps Are Revolutionizing Relationships Today?. [online] Thriveglobal.com. Available at: www.thriveglobal.com [Accessed 6 October 2020].

Fry, H., 2014. The Mathematics Of Love. [online] Ted.com. Available at: www.ted.com/ [Accessed 6 October 2020].

Statista, 2020. Topic: Online Dating In The United States. [online] Statista. Available at: <https://www.statista.com/topics/2158/online-dating/> [Accessed 6 October 2020].

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The future of dating: Online dating predictions for 2040

4

October

2017

No ratings yet. Currently, more than 20% of the people in the Netherlands had a relationship that started online. The Dutch have always been relatively open to online dating and bachelors are increasingly becoming interested in taking such shortcuts to find their next dates. Casual dating apps and flirt websites like Tinder and Badoo are therefore among the fastest growing in The Netherlands. [1]

What will the future of online dating be in the Netherlands?

Well, fortunately, dating experts from Imperial College Business School and eHarmony.co.uk shared a report in November 2015 [2] in which they explored the future of dating by using more than 100 years of trend data and interviews with experts in the field of anthropology, sociology, technology and biomedicine.

The report suggests that in 25 years Virtual Reality will be so advanced that “full-sensory virtual dates will feel like real ones. You will be able to feel someone’s hand and smell their fragrance from the comfort of your home.

That means that you could virtually meet someone online before you meet him or her in the real world. This will open up a global dating pool of people to meet, and with advances in wearable technology, you and your date will be able to feel and “touch” each other from anywhere in the world. [3]

Advancements in the Internet of Things and the growing popularity of wearable technology will replace personality questionnaires for behavior-based matching. Live reactions, neural signals in your brain, and even DNA data will be used for helping you to find your better half. [4]

In addition, big data and machine learning will help you on deciding which long-term life decisions to take such us when to get married, how many children to have or even on day-to-day decisions. Similarly, artificial intelligence will also be able to provide relationship advice and real-time feedback for couples by identifying problems and solutions. [5]

References:
[1] http://www.datinginsider.nl/research-on-dating-market-in-the-netherlands-more-than-20-had-a-relationship-that-started-online
[2] http://www.eharmony.co.uk/dating-advice/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/eHarmony.co_.uk-Imperial-College-Future-of-Dating-Report-20401.pdf
[3] http://www.eharmony.co.uk/dating-advice/dating/experts-predict-what-dating-will-be-like-by-2040
[4] https://www.wareable.com/wearable-tech/the-future-of-dating-667
[5] https://www.eharmony.co.uk/future-of-dating

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Tinder + Spotify = perfect match?

26

September

2016

No ratings yet. Imagine this: you found your perfect match on Tinder. The conversations have been going great and you really cannot wait to meet this person. You finally go on a date, and everything seems to be going smoothly, until you ask her what music she listens to. You’re shocked; she says she is a major fan of boybands and Taylor Swift. Your world has been shattered because you hate boybands, and especially Taylor Swift. You know for sure that this will be your last date together.

This will no longer happen. The dating-app Tinder and the streaming service Spotify recently paired up, and together they might be able to create some sweet music. Tinder now allows its users to choose their “Anthem”, which will be shown on their profile, as well as sending music to their potential matches. When viewing someone’s profile you are able to see their top-played songs, and see what preferences you may have in common.

https://youtu.be/f49Z0ZPBaWA

The thought behind this collaboration is that you can easily tell a lot about a person based on their taste in music, and if you share the same taste the potential future dates may be more interesting. Tinder CEO, Sean Rad, thinks “Music is an important part of making new connections and getting to know existing ones”. Additionally, the Tinder-users are now also able to play tracks from Spotify directly on the Tinder-app, without having to own a Spotify-account. This creates a win-win situation for both Apps, as more users will be drawn to join Spotify, and more users will be inclined to use Tinder to express themselves. As Spotify’s Brendan O’Driscoll said “Not every Tinder user is a Spotify user, so a whole bunch of new people will start to interact with Spotify content, and gradually get to know and use and like Spotify. [But] it isn’t just for acquiring new users. It’s for existing users as well.”

This may not seem like a major advancement to online dating, but it might serve as a clue to what the future dating scene will look like. Will be all be automatically paired up with our potential “soul mates”, based on several amount of preferences, or is it possible that opposites do attract? Let me know what you think!

 

 

Sources:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2016/09/21/spotify-and-tinder-link-up-to-form-a-match-made-in-heaven/2/#1c9e703a7dad

http://venturebeat.com/2016/09/20/spotify-tinder-partnership/

Tinder taps Spotify to let you add music to your profile

 

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