NEW YORK TIMES - Whitney Wolfe Herd, founder of Bumble and co-founder of Tinder, returns as CEO of Bumble after a year-long break. She initially left due to exhaustion, family priorities, and burnout. Her return was prompted by the resignation of her successor and a feeling that Bumble needed her back. She reflects on: Tinder's toxic culture and her sexual harassment lawsuit; her disappointment with media coverage, notably Bloomberg's critique of Bumble's feminist branding as mere marketing; admitting Bumble isn't perfect, acknowledging overselling its empowerment angle, and its role in dating app fatigue. On Gen Z fatigue, she says users feel judged and rejected by current app mechanics, like swiping. Her solution: overhaul Bumble using AI and human coaches to offer more intelligent matchmaking and self-reflection tools - quizzes to help users understand themselves and build better relationships. She's also pivoting toward offline connections, launching features that promote local group events, aiming to fight loneliness and build community. Wolfe Herd criticizes venture capital's bias against women and the regression of support for female founders.
803 posts categorized "Bumble"
Whitney Wolfe Herd on Burning out and Bouncing Back
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Analyst Outlook - New Street Research - "Online Dating Resilient in Downturns"
OPW - Continued challenges with Gen Z usage remain the long-term cloud hanging over the dating sector. In the short term, MTCH and BMBL have seen considerable management turnover, and the market is now waiting to see if new leaders can change course. At MTCH, CEO Bernard Kim and CTO Will Wu have departed, as has long-time President/CFO Gary Swidler, while Spencer Rascoff (previously on the Board) and Steven Bailey (Swidler's longtime lieutenant) have taken over the CEO and CFO roles. At BMBL, Whitney Wolfe Herd has returned and begun a significant overhaul of senior management. The exception: consistent leadership from George Arison and Vanna Krantz has helped anchor GRND's continued outperformance.
The big question facing new management at MTCH and BMBL: can consistent, healthy revenue growth re-emerge, or are these mature businesses where cost-cutting and the return of capital to shareholders become more important themes?
In the shorter term, the market is broadly focused on the potential impact of changing US tariff policies, and online dating has typically been more resilient in economic downturns relative to other Internet sectors like eCommerce and digital advertising. With that said, a la carte revenue trends dipped at Tinder in the past few weeks, so it's not completely immune, and macro uncertainty adds to the challenge of kick-starting innovation, improving trust and safety, and figuring out the right mix of price and product merchandising facing MTCH and BMBL.
Daniel Salmon - Partner, New Street Research
Mark Brooks: This is a guest post from our investor analyst friend Dan Salmon. We occasionally work on Zoom and IRL investor events with investor analysts who cover the dating industry.
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Bumble CEO Admits Growth Strategy Backfired as Revenue Drops 7.7%
BUSINESS INSIDER - Bumble reported a 7.7% drop in Q1 2025 revenue as founder Whitney Wolfe Herd, who returned as CEO in March, acknowledged the app lost its way by prioritizing growth over user experience. She cited an influx of low-quality profiles, poor matches, and a shift from word-of-mouth to performance marketing as key missteps. Bumble plans to cut ad spend, remove bad actors, and improve matching with AI. The company is trying to recover from a 90% stock decline since its 2021 IPO. Competitor Match Group also reported weak results, laying off 13% of its staff.
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Bumble Announces Q1 2025 Results
BUSINESSWIRE - Bumble's total revenue decreased 8% to $247M. Bumble app revenue decreased 6% to $202M, and paying users decreased 1% to 2.7M. Net earnings were $19.8M, or 8% of revenue, compared to net earnings of $33.9M, or 12.6% of revenue. Adjusted EBITDA was $64.4M, compared to $74M in Q1 24. During Q1 of 2025, Bumble repurchased $28.7M of Class A common stock shares under our previously announced $450M share repurchase program. As of March 31, 2025, $50M remained available for repurchase under the program.
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Bumble Appoints New Executive Leaders
BUMBLE - Bumble has named three new executives as part of its 2025 strategy. Vivek Sagi joins as Chief Technology Officer, bringing global experience in product and engineering. Julie Radford becomes Chief Communications & Corporate Affairs Officer, with a background in public and private sector leadership. Deirdre Runnette is the new Chief Legal Officer, with over 25 years' experience in legal and compliance.
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Dating Apps Turn to AI to Help Gen Z Users Improve Flirting and Conversation Skills
WIRED - Dating apps are introducing AI-driven tools to help users improve conversation skills and reduce awkward interactions. Tinder launched "The Game Game," an AI voice simulator that places users in fictional scenarios and offers feedback to boost flirting confidence. Grindr is testing an AI "wingman" powered by Anthropic and AWS, designed to craft witty messages, highlight past connections, and summarize chats. Hinge released a connection guide with fill-in-the-blank templates to help Gen Z users navigate real-life interactions and overcome a fear of appearing "cringey." Bumble introduced "Instant Match," which lets users scan QR codes at events to match instantly and view shared interests, bypassing small talk.
by Elana Klein
See full article at Wired
See the top news on Tinder See the top news on Grindr
See the top news on Bumble See the top news on Hinge
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Feeld Won a Webby Award
LINKEDIN - In May 2024, Bumble faced backlash for an ad campaign that mocked celibacy, featuring slogans like "You know full well a vow of celibacy is not the answer." Critics accused the ads of undermining women's personal choices and promoting patriarchal views. In response, Bumble apologized, removed the ads, and pledged donations to relevant organizations. Seizing the moment, the dating app Feeld collaborated with the agency Mojo Supermarket to introduce a "Celibacy" tag that allowed users to identify as celibate. This real-time response resonated with users, earning Feeld the Webby Award for Best Real-Time Response Campaign.
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Bumble Under Fire After Users Report Seeing Blocked Profiles Resurface
ROLLING STONE - Bumble faced backlash after users reported seeing profiles they had previously blocked, prompting safety concerns. Jennie Young, a professor and dating app strategist, shared a support email suggesting blocked users might reappear "in case you changed your mind." A follower tested this by logging out and back in, confirming the same blocked profiles were still visible. Bumble later walked back the claim, stating the original message was inaccurate and that blocked users should not reappear unless they create new accounts.
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Bumble CLO Exits After Just 10 Months
LAW.COM - Elizabeth Monteleone has stepped down as Bumble's chief legal officer just 10 months after taking the role. The company has passed the legal reins to Deirdre Runnette, a former general counsel of the online retailer Zulily. Amid sluggish performance, company founder Whitney Wolfe Herd, who'd been CEO until January 2024, returned as CEO in March, replacing Lidiane Jones, who'd made the controversial move to pivot away from the app's women-make-the-first-move strategy, which had differentiated it from other dating apps. Also in March, Anuradha Subramanian resigned as chief financial officer.
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Bumble Proves Politics Is No Longer Taboo in Dating
BANDT - Bumble has partnered with political commentator Hannah Ferguson to explore how politics is influencing modern dating in Australia. Ahead of the Federal Election, Ferguson uses poll data from ~7,200 Australians to highlight shifting norms - 80% are comfortable discussing politics on a first date, while 64% believe dating across political lines is impossible. Despite this, 36% remain open to it.
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Top Dating Apps by Press Coverage in 2024
OPW - In 2024, we selected and summarized close to 700 of the top news items from the online dating industry. These 10 companies made the most headlines in 2024, driven by leadership changes, product launches, lawsuits, and bold strategic moves:
- Match Group - Topped coverage as Elliott bought a $1B stake, partnered with OpenAI, launched a buyback, and reshuffled leadership.
- Tinder - Named Faye Iosotaluno as CEO, expanded ID verification globally and launched a celeb-only dating app
- Bumble - Cut 350 jobs, launched AI scam detection, bought Geneva, and rethought "women make the first move."
- Hinge - Rolled out chat limits, Hidden Words, and launched a $1M fund to drive in-person Gen Z connections.
- Grindr - Marked 15 years, expanded into long-term dating, saw 85% stock growth, and faced HIV data lawsuits.
- Archer - Surpassed 1M downloads, added selfie verification and AI moderation.
- Feeld - Nearly doubled revenue to £39.5M, rebranded, and launched a magazine on non-traditional relationships.
- Matrimony - Launched MeraLuv and WeddingLoan.com, but faced a major setback as Google removed its apps.
- Muzz - Reached 10M users, debuted Muzz Social, launched matchmaking in Pakistan, and introduced chat limits.
- OkCupid - Turned 20 years old.
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Wolfe Herd Returns to Reinvent Bumble as 'Love Company'
FORTUNE - Whitney Wolfe Herd is back as CEO of Bumble after 14 months away, following a 90% stock drop, user backlash, and leadership missteps. She admits burnout and an "ego death" during her break and now wants to transform Bumble from a dating app into a "Love Company" focused on self-worth, joy, and personal growth. Her new vision? Shift from "women make the first move" to "make the first move for yourself." She plans to add self-help features, like a Duolingo-style coaching tool, and overhaul the app's rejection-heavy dynamics. She's candid about men's struggles on the app and wants Bumble to serve both genders better. Wolfe Herd says she no longer chases external validation or stock price. She's rebranding Bumble around purpose, not pressure - and says the misery in modern dating (and leadership) stops now.
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Match Group and Bumble Have New CEOs and a Renewed Safety Focus
BUSINESS INSIDER - Match Group and Bumble have both appointed new CEOs amid leadership shake-ups and struggles with user engagement. Whitney Wolfe Herd has returned as Bumble CEO, replacing Lidiane Jones, who resigned after a year. Several top executives, including Bumble's CFO and CMO, have also left. Meanwhile, Match Group has named Spencer Rascoff as CEO, marking its fourth leadership change in six years. Both companies face declining stock prices (Match down 11%, Bumble down 54%) and shifting user behavior, with Match's paying users falling 5% to 9.5M, while Bumble's rose 11.5% to 4.1M. As Gen Z and women move away from traditional dating apps, both companies are focusing on safety features, AI-driven tools, and real-world dating initiatives to regain trust and engagement.
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Bumble Introduces ID Verification and Safety Feature
TECH CRUNCH - Bumble has introduced ID verification to boost user safety, allowing daters to authenticate their identity with a government-issued ID and earn a profile badge. Users can now filter matches based on verification status and request verification from potential dates. The feature is live in multiple countries, including the U.S., U.K., and India, with plans for further expansion. Alongside this, Bumble launched "Share Date" for users to share date details with friends, "Review Before You Send" to flag inappropriate messages before sending, and a new "Discover" page to match users by interests. The updates come as Bumble faces declining revenue and rising concerns over AI-generated fake profiles and romance scams.
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Whitney Wolfe Herd Returns as Bumble CEO to Revive Growth
CNBC TV - Whitney Wolfe Herd returns as Bumble's CEO in March 2025 after stepping down in 2021, replacing Lidiane Jones, who resigned after just over a year. Wolfe Herd, who co-founded Tinder before launching Bumble in 2014, made history by taking the company public in 2021. Under her leadership, Bumble became a major online dating player, emphasizing women making the first move. Her return comes as Bumble faces declining stock value (down nearly 54% in the past year) and increasing competition. With 4.1M paying users in 2024 (up 11.5%), the company is looking to regain momentum and improve user trust.
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