Tinder launches AI chatbot that teaches the art of flirting

Tinder, an online dating service owned by Match Group Inc., has developed the new interactive game within the app. Participants are offered to communicate with chatbots based on AI, which should help them practice flirting and return to the app more often.

Bloomberg writes about it.

Everything we know about the game inside Tinder

According to Tinder representatives, this experiment is both a marketing ploy and a way to show how GPT-4o and GPT-4o mini can generate comic scenes from romantic comedies.

The scenarios are designed for voice communication: for example, a chance meeting while choosing groceries in a supermarket or confusion with luggage at the airport. During the conversation with the bot, users receive feedback and "points" for the warmth and interest of their answers, and the "victory" is the consent of the artificial character to go on a date.

Game sessions are limited to five attempts per day and last about three minutes. Currently, the feature is available only to iOS owners in the United States and has been launched for a certain period. According to Hillary Paine, Tinder's vice president of product, growth, and revenue, the company will decide whether to make this option permanent after evaluating user feedback.

Since Tinder started losing some of its subscribers in 2023, the company has been focusing on attracting young people: representatives of "Generation Z" make up about half of the app's user base. In an effort to restore revenue growth, the brand has set a course to bring entertainment back to the service and fight against fake profiles. The management also announced new features such as "double dates" and additional rewards for regular use of the app.

The new game with chatbots, unofficially called The Game Game, is not a full-fledged AI companion. The developers emphasize that it is designed for light-hearted situations so that users can safely train flirting and communication skills. According to Paine, time limitations and frankly exaggerated scenarios help to avoid overdependence on virtual conversations.

As a reminder, experts conducted the research of chatbots and analysed their privacy policies. The goal was to identify which popular AI tools collect the most information about users.

We also wrote that Elon Musk officially announced that his AI chatbot Grok was now available on Telegram. However, not all users of the messenger have access to it.