This past week, Whitney Wolfe Herd, the founder and executive chair of Bumble, sparked interest with her insights on the potential impact of AI on the dating landscape.
During an onstage conversation with Bloomberg’s Emily Chang, concerns were raised about AI potentially worsening online dating through bots impersonating real users or people developing attachments to AI. Herd countered these concerns by sharing Bumble’s vision to leverage AI for fostering “more healthy and equitable relationships.”
Herd painted a futuristic scenario where users might consult an AI “dating concierge” about their insecurities, receiving guidance to improve their dating experiences. Taking it a step further, she envisioned a scenario where these AI concierges could assist in matchmaking by interacting with each other on behalf of users. If the AI concierges have a successful “date,” their human counterparts could then be matched.
Despite initial giggles from the audience, Herd insisted on the practicality of her vision: “No, no, truly. And then you don’t have to talk to 600 people. It will just scan all of San Francisco for you and say, ‘These are the three people you want to meet.’”
Herd’s remarks, reported by NBC News and other media outlets, have since garnered mixed reactions on social media. A popular critique likened the concept to an episode of the dystopian series “Black Mirror.”
Specifically, the “Hang the DJ” episode features a society dedicated to pairing individuals by running simulations. In this episode, characters endure repetitive relationships in a controlled environment, only to learn they are digital simulations designed to determine compatibility. Upon escaping, they realize their existence was a test, and they vanish into a digital ether.
Ironically, the episode concludes on a relatively positive note with the real-life counterparts of the simulations likely to succeed in their relationship. Hence, the matchmaking tool appears effective in the narrative.
However, if there’s criticism to be made, it is on behalf of the digital entities living tedious, constrained lives solely for matchmaking purposes, devoid of real-world connections or purpose. Their existence ends abruptly once the simulation’s goal is met.
Therefore, if we are to entertain the idea of bot-to-bot dating, let’s extend it further: allow these AI beings to have full lives. Let them continue their relationships, work, form friendships, and explore personal growth and fulfillment, rather than limiting their existence to dating simulations.
This, of course, presupposes the creation of sophisticated digital replicas capable of encapsulating human complexities. If the AI remains as simplistic chatbots based on minimal data, the envisioned dating revolution may fall short.
