Lauren Goode: I also think if there is a bright spot, it’s probably going to be some of the apps that are very specific for people that help people winnow down what they’re looking for and find someone who is aligned with what they want, whether that’s someone who shares super niche interests or cultural values or even disabilities, people who just are like, “I need to find someone who actually understands this.” I think that there are a lot of positives in dating apps for that.
Michael Calore: Yeah. Another place that AI is making some interesting enhancements to the app experience is through the matchmaking, basically giving you a smaller subset of people that it thinks you’ll be best matched for. Instead of just showing you the old algorithm, there’s this new algorithm that gives you a better selection, and that’s kind of interesting. So yeah, I don’t think these things are going to stop people from using the apps, and I don’t think they’re going to necessarily make any of the other problems of the apps go away, but they could lead to more meaningful connections happening more quickly for people.
Lauren Goode: We’re going to leave this on a positive note, right guys? We’re going to give all the people looking for love, something to hope for.
Michael Calore: Embrace.
Lauren Goode: We’re like, “Look, no one’s using the apps anymore. Revenues are down, executive shakeups, scams, spam, bots, but keep looking.”
Michael Calore: Buy the ticket, take the ride. Embrace the AI matchmaker and the AI chatbot. Let it do all of the work for you. All right, so to close us out, let’s pretend that we’re going back out into IRL dating and we’re going out to meet somebody. What is the ideal place to meet somebody?
Zoë Schiffer: I mean, I met my husband at a book club and I thought that was a pretty good place.
Lauren Goode: That’s pretty good. Gosh, I don’t know. I’d probably say a friend’s party or something like that. Or maybe something like a piano bar, and then you have to figure out if the person is there because they are being ironic or they’re really into piano.
Michael Calore: And probably both of those would be good, right?
Lauren Goode: Sure. Yeah.
Michael Calore: You kind of want the person who’s genuinely there earnestly, and you kind of want the person who’s there, ironically.
Lauren Goode: Yeah.
Michael Calore: I would say probably the best place to meet somebody is on a bike ride.
Lauren Goode: It’s hard to have the conversation.
Michael Calore: There are group rides though.
Zoë Schiffer: Oh, right. And there’s always coffee and pastry afterwards.
Michael Calore: There’s always coffee and pastry afterwards.
Zoë Schiffer: That’s a good one.
Lauren Goode: I like that.
Michael Calore: Nobody said Instagram.
Lauren Goode: No. No one did.
Michael Calore: Slide into those DMs folks, it’s Valentine’s Day.
Lauren Goode: Seems like a good place to end it.
Michael Calore: Thanks for listening to Uncanny Valley. If you liked what you heard today, make sure to follow our show and rate it on your podcast app of choice. If you’d like to get in touch with us with any questions, comments, or show suggestions, you can write to us at uncannyvalley@WIRED.com. Today’s show was produced by Kyana Mogadam. Matt Giles fact-checked this episode. Amar Lal at Macrosound, mixed this episode. Jordan Bell is our executive producer. Katie Drummond is the editor-in-Chief of WIRED, and Chris Bannon is the head of global audio.
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