 |
|
|
|||||
Matchmaking is an ancient dating process that stretches back thousands of years. But as online dating fatigue has begun to dominate the modern-day discourse around finding love, one company is betting that matchmaking will see a revival, and theyve spent years developing a tool to make it happen: an AI matchmaker named Tai. One might argue that all modern dating apps aim to serve as a kind of matchmaker; an intermediary whose purpose is to connect two singles with each other. But Adam Cohen-Aslatai, CEO of the matchmaking company Three Day Rule, says dating apps still put the onus on users to choose the right partners based on what the algorithm serves. In contrast, he explains, a traditional matchmaker uses their in-depth knowledge of the client to facilitate that process, selecting matches that arent just compatible on a screen, but in real life. Now, Three Day Rule is rolling out its first-ever app designed to bring that human-centric matchmaking experience to a broader client base. The app leverages multiple AI models built upon 15 years of matchmaking data collected by the company. While Three Day Rules elite white-glove matchmaking services typically run clients around $2,000 per month, its AI matchmaker is available starting for free. AI features have become increasingly popular on existing dating apps in recent months. But Cohen-Aslatai says none of them are fixing the larger problem: Self-serve dating apps just dont work very well. Traditional dating apps are effective 9-11% of the time, he claims, compared with an 70-80% success rate for traditional matchmaking. Matchmakers aren’t self-serve; they are serving you, Cohen-Aslatai says. They are doing all the work for you. And they’re saying, I know you better than you know yourself. I know what you need for long term relationships. And I’m not going to let you waste your time on people that are candy, I’m going to give you the full meal. Three Day Rule Founder Talia Goldstein and CEO Adam Cohen Aslatei [Photo: Three Day Rule] Is matchmaking the new swiping? For many singles searching for love, AI-powered tools are becoming an integral part of the swiping process. Hinge now uses AI to help users craft better profile prompt responses; Tinder is set to roll out AI-powered personalized matches; the AI assistant app Rizz uses AI exclusively to help users come up with responses on dating apps; the AI relationship advice app Meeno helps men find love; and Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd even announced that the company is currently working on its own AI matchmaking service. Cohen-Aslatai has seen it all. He previously worked at dating apps including The Meet Group, Zoosk, and Bumbles gay dating app Chappy, and even founded and sold his own app called SMore. But, over the past few years, hes become convinced that matchmaking is the most effective dating option out there. He argues that, on dating apps, users are looking for a match that meets their requirements on paperstandards that, oftentimes, are preventing them from taking healthy risks. Matchmakers are trained to take those preferences into consideration while also encouraging clients to try people slightly outside their comfort zone. Three Day Rule’s process starts by assigning three experts to each client: A matchmaker tasked with learning everything about the clients needs and wants in a relationship, a coach to help advise clients on dates, and a recruiter who meets potential matches at places like the airport or the beach. For its highest paying VIP members, the company offers everything from personal stylists to hair and makeup services. It’s dating for people with more than just a little extra money who don’t want to leave their love lives up to chance. Cohen-Aslatai stepped in as the CEO of Three Day Rule last October. In the past year, he says company sales have increased by a whopping 40%. Its VIP matchmaking membershipwhich costs a head-turning $100,000 for 16 monthshas also shot up from accounting for 5% of its business to 50% in the same period. Last year, Three Day Rule conducted its own survey to understand how singles outside of its network are thinking about matchmaking. The report, which included 250 respondents, found that 74% would try matchmaking, while only 1% actually have. The main reason for that discrepancy is the price barrier. So, if you think that matchmaking works, and everyone would try it, but it’s too expensive, the question is, how do we democratize this concept? Cohen-Aslatai says. [Image: Three Day Rule] How Three Day Rule built an AI matchmaker The answer hes landed on is Tai. Cohen-Asla”tai” and Sneha Ramachandran, general manager of Three Day Rules new app, have been working on perfecting this AI matchmaker for the past two years. Whereas Three Day Rule’s services typically start at a hefty $1,500 for a three-month plan, its new app comes in a free tier, which gives users five minutes of daily voice conversation with Tai and a separate AI coach (alongside unlimited texting), as well as five ogoing conversations with matches. A second premium tier costs $99 per month and includes four guaranteed match introductions per month, 10 minutes of daily conversation with Tai and an AI coach, and unlimited conversations with matches. Tai is built off of ChatGPT, which, Cohen-Aslatai says, has the fastest voice response rates of any other models on the market. But while ChatGPT serves as the base of the model, its trained on data collected by Three Day Rule. That means that all of Tais interactionsfrom their tone to the questions they askare informed by data collected through Three Day Rules human matchmakers. Unlike other dating services, which are primarily focused on facilitating first dates, Cohen-Aslatai explains that Three Day Rule has collected a wealth of post-date data. This information, gathered through multi-question surveys sent after every date, lets matchmakers know exactly what the client did and didnt like about their match. All of these insights have helped to refine Tais matching abilities. When users first download Three Day Rule, theyll have to complete a mandatory photo verification process in order to join. From there, theyll have an initial conversation with Tai (via text or voice messages), during which Tai will gather key details like important preferences, demographic and psychographic information, and relationship deal-breakers. After that discussion, Tai will begin searching the apps database for matches. Over time, the model will make its way through 150 questions identified by Three Day Rule as important topics to understand exactly what a client is looking for. We’re trying to really deeply understand your personality, Cohen-Aslatai explains. Part of that process means attempting to replicate the uniquely human touch of a matchmaker in AI form. If a user is giving brief yes or no answers, Ramachandran says, Tai will adjust its responses to match that cadence and probe deeper in later conversations. A chattier user will get chattier answers. Tai is even programmed to trick you by asking the same question in different ways if it suspects you may just be giving the answer it wants to hear. When the app identifies potential matches, both parties have to approve the decision before theyre connected online. From there, users can also chat with a second AI model in the app, which stands in for the human coach the company offers to its clients. This model has been trained using company podcasts, articles, and coaching guidelines to field questions about dates, debrief interactions, and help clients overcome personal obstacles to love. In response to a question like, I liked him, but how can I know if he liked me? for example, it might give three potential signals of mutual attraction. The app is built to offload the effort of swiping, searching, and vetting potential partners from the user onto the AI matchmaker. All the client should have to worry about, in theory, is uncovering what they really want in a partner. [Image: Three Day Rule] Why relationship experts are wary about AI-powered dating apps Tai is designed to make navigating the online dating world less complicated. But Treena Orchard, an associate professor at the School of Health Studies at Western University in London and author of the book Sticky, Sexy, Sad: Swipe Culture and the Darker Side of Dating, isnt convinced. As a researcher specializing in the intersection of sex, relationships, gender, and tech, Orchard is generally wary about the claims made by many dating apps that AI features will make dating easierespecially considering that, from her perspective, that shouldnt necessarily be the goal. The problem I have with a lot of these different services is that it just really amplifies the difficulties that already exist, Orchard says. Dating is going to be hard no matter who’s doing it, because relationships are strange and we’re humans, and we have lots of desires and things pent up, and we’re not really good at teaching each other how to talk about these things. When we start to rely on an external source to facilitate datingwhether that be a matchmaker or a digital deviceshe says that we become removed from the process of actually getting to know each other. In regard to Three Day Rules new app, Orchard sees the utility of tapping into a network created by professional matchmakers who have experience in pulling together eligible singles. Still, she says, its important to recognize that, while matchmaking may be statistically more effective than dating apps, thats also because its historically required a much greater financial investment. Okay, it’s been trained by high end white-glove matchmakersgreatbut it’s still AI, Orchard says. One of the critiques I have is that variety is so important. Taking a chance on someone new and someone different can open up a whole interesting Pandora’s box of experiences that you could never have calculated in your wildest dreams if you just rely on an algorithm. On a broader scale, shes concerned about what it might mean to continuously find new ways to incorporate AI into our romantic relationships. For those who feel trapped in the online dating cycle, she recommends balancing the apps with trying new in-person events and hobbieseven, and especially, if its hard. The struggle is how we learn about rejection, about resilience, about failure, about one another, and how we get better at dating and become confident in ourselves, Orchard says.
Category:
E-Commerce
Shares in AppLovin were up slightly in premarket trading today after falling by double digits on Monday. The volatile movement follows a Monday report about a rumored probe by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which reversed the fortunes of what had been a high-growth tech stock for much of 2025. Here’s the latest on AppLovin and what to know: What was reported about AppLoving? On Monday, Bloomberg reported that the SEC was looking into the ad tech company’s data collection practices in response to a whistleblower complaint and multiple short-seller reports published earlier this year. Specifically, the regulatory agency is looking into whether AppLovin violated service agreements with its platform partners to “push more targeted advertising to consumers,” Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources. Reuters reported on the rumored probe later on Monday. AppLovin did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fast Company. A spokesperson for the SEC said the agency was unable to respond to press requests due to the ongoing government shutdown. How has AppLovin’s stock reacted? AppLovin Corp stock (Nasdaq:APP) has fallen significantly since the reports surfaced. Shares were down more than 14% by market close on Monday. On Tuesday morning, however, the stock remained volatile. It was down close to 4% in premarket trading earlier in the morning but moved into positive territory later in the session. It was up about 1.11% as of this writing. The stock had seen tremendous growth this year, trading at around $341 a share in early January and mushrooming to over $682 as of Friday of last weekan increase of around 100%. In terms of growth, it has outperformed Big Tech giants such as Nvidia, Meta, Google, and Apple. In September, AppLovin’s stock was added to the S&P 500. This followed a better-than-expected earnings report in August in which net income more than doubled to $819.5 million, CNBC reported. At the time, the company was seen as benefiting from its AI-powered technology that helps advertisers better target users in mobile games. This story is developing . . .
Category:
E-Commerce
Working with your romantic partner isn’t just a niche phenomenon; it’s a growing trend. A recent study from the National Library of Medicine reveals nearly one in four U.S. small businesses are run by romantic couples. Yet, for all the talk of “power couples” in the startup world, precious little unfiltered insight exists on what it actually takes to share a bed, a budget, and a booming enterprise. For many, the lines between personal and professional don’t just blur; they cease to exist. My husband, Joe, and I are the founders behind Serenity Kids, now the fastest-growing shelf-stable baby food brand in the U.S. Our origin story is uniquely intertwined with our personal one: the business was our first “baby,” meticulously nurtured from a shared frustration with the unhealthy baby food aisle. Our second? A literal, adorable human baby who is, unbelievably, seven this year. As we scale a multimillion-dollar company while simultaneously navigating the exhilarating chaos of parenthood, Ive gained an interesting perspective on the strategic moves and nonnegotiable rules that keep our marriage, and our company, thriving. The Nonnegotiable Boundary That Saved Our Marriage It sounds counterintuitive for founders whose lives are inextricably linked to their venture: put a hard stop on work discussions once you walk through the front door. But for Joe and me, this rule became the lynchpin of our relationship’s resilience. In the early days of Serenity Kids, it was 24/7. Every meal, every car ride, every evening was a business meeting. Our passion was relentless, but I quickly realized the constant operational debriefs were eroding our identity as a couple. We were colleagues who lived together, not partners. The encroachment was subtle. Wed be dissecting strategy over dinner or debating a supply chain hiccup right before bed. I realized that I missed him. And I had no idea what was truly happening in my partners life outside of work. The breaking point was Joe sleeping in the guest room because wed had yet another work fight at bedtime. Those nights were disconnecting and actually set us backboth personally and professionally. Because close connection is our special sauce. Personality-wise, we are total opposites in every wayhes an extrovert while Im an introvert, Im a perfectionist while hes a good enough kind of guy, etc. So when were disconnected, were each operating as only half of a complete whole. I knew we needed a sacred space where we could simply be Serenity and Joe, disconnected from our job titles. Our solution: an unwavering commitment to compartmentalization. Of course, genuine emergencies warrant discussion. But the default is clear: once we’re home, we consciously shift gears. We discuss our day as parents and individuals. We prioritize connecting on a human level over any work-related issues. We have 1:1 meetings on the calendar three times a week just to discuss work. And if either one of us tries to bring up a work topic, we say put it on the agenda! We also have dedicated date days or date nights where we commit to avoiding both work and kid talk, so we can focus on each other, as well as quarterly vision retreats where we visualize the future of our relationship, family, and business. This rigorous boundary, challenging as it was to implement initially, has proven invaluable. It forces hyperefficiency during work hours and provides essential emotional bandwidth to nurture our romantic relationship, separate from the relentless demands of the business. Strategic Division of Labor In any cofounder dynamic, clear role definition is paramount. When you add parenting to the equation, that clarity shifts from crucial to existential. For Joe and me, this has been a huge area of growth and evolution. For the first several years after we had our daughter, I had the constant hum in my head that most working moms experience. Whats for dinner? Whos handling bath and bedtime tonight? What meetings do I have today and what should I wear? For a long time, I wrestled with that mental load. Not just about completing the task, but all the thinking, planning, and worrying that drained my energy. I wasnt sleeping well, I wasnt eating well, and I just wasnt taking care of myself. While Joe watched TV at night, I stayed up late washing bottles, ordering next-size-up baby clothes, and researching Dellas latest mystery rash. All while still working full time plus managing our familys finances and anything that required paperwork. I was miserable. And after a brush with death from COVID pneumonia, I knew something had to change. I found the Fair Play method by Eve Rodsky, and my mind was blown. I now could see the mountains of invisible work I had been doing since Della was born that Joe had no idea even existed. After some hard conversations and Joes willingness to experiment with a different way, the constant weight began to lighten. Throughout this process, he and I have become true partners. He is no longer a partner who just “helps out.” This philosophy has shaped how Joe and I built our marriage and approach parenting. He dives deep into this in Episode 7 of his podcast Dadicated Joe, sharing how weve worked to keep the spark alive after becoming parents. Applying these principles has not only brought more harmony to my family but also reinforced the importance of clear roles, mutual respect, and holistic well-being at Serenity Kids. We work to build culture and sustainable systems where everyone can truly thrive. While encouragement is nice, what we all really need is a partner willing to jump in and fold the laundry when the piles get high. Weve learned to be that support for each other. At home. At work. Everywhere. 5 Crucial Lessons Ive learned a wealth of actionable insights I’d offer to other romantic partners considering, or currently navigating, the high-stakes journey of entrepreneurial cofounding: Strict Role Definition (and Unwavering Trust): This is nonnegotiable. You need to clearly delineate who owns what. Then, extend absolute trust in your partners domain. Undermining their decisions in their area of responsibility is a direct threat to both business progress and relationship integrity. Cultivate Separate Spaces (Even Symbolic Ones): Joe and I quickly learned that constant physical proximity, transitioning from “work mode” to “couple mode” in the same room, was counterproductive. Whether it’s different offices or simply dedicated “zones,” creating some physical and mental separation during work hours is vital for psychological resets. Proactive Relationship Investment: Your business will demand everything, but your personal relationship is the fundamental platform. Prioritize dedicated date nights, even if they’re modest. Engage in non-work conversations. Actively recall and reinforce the shared values and affection that initially drew you together, beyond the business ambition. Embrace Dynamic Balance, Not Static Perfection: The concept of “perfect balance” is a myth. ome days, the business will command absolute priority. On others, your child will need every ounce of your attention. Success lies in embracing this inherent fluidity and adapting, rather than chasing an unattainable, rigid ideal. Leverage Objective External Counsel: Engaging an objective third partya business coach, a therapist specializing in entrepreneurial couples, or even a trusted mentorprovides invaluable perspective. They can facilitate healthy conflict resolution, reinforce boundaries, and ensure that communication remains robust and constructive. The journey of building Serenity Kids has served as a rigorous masterclass in leadership, partnership, and parenthood for Joe and me. We’re not merely disrupting the baby food market; we’re actively demonstrating a new paradigm for how ambitious couples can build a thriving enterprise and a fulfilling family life. Its not perfect. Its often messy. But I hope our story encourages others to set strategic boundaries, show mutual respect, and find an abundance of resilience. Maybe those of us crazy enough to do both journeys together truly can have it alleven if it means putting your first “baby” to bed before focusing on bedtime at home.
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||