Bumble is developing a new interaction model that could eventually replace swiping as the dating company puts more emphasis on real-world meetings and smaller group gatherings. CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd said its recently launched Plans app has shown promising early results and that Bumble intends to invest further in in-person experiences.
The strategy is aimed partly at younger users who have become less engaged with traditional dating-app mechanics. Bumble wants to make interactions more intentional while reducing the time users spend repeatedly sorting through profiles.
Plans Focuses on Small Group Meetups
Plans is designed to help people meet others through small gatherings such as drinks and dinners at local venues. Unlike Bumble’s core dating product, the experience is not built primarily around finding a romantic match before meeting in person.
Wolfe Herd said group socializing plays an important role in how Gen Z forms relationships. Bumble believes bringing people together with less pressure could allow friendships or romantic connections to develop more naturally.
Plans also lets participants continue conversations through Bumble without exchanging phone numbers. Users do not have to swipe through profiles before taking part in these meetups.
Bumble previously expanded beyond dating through Bumble BFF, its friendship-focused product. Plans takes that approach further by putting the real-world gathering ahead of deciding whether a connection should become romantic.
Bumble Is Developing a Replacement for Swiping
Wolfe Herd also confirmed that Bumble is working on a new interaction system for its flagship dating app. She said the company wants to move away from optimizing for the speed and volume of swipes and instead encourage fewer, more deliberate signals between users.
Bumble has not disclosed exactly what will replace swiping. Wolfe Herd said the company is keeping the design private for competitive reasons but described it as a system intended to produce faster interactions with less friction between discovering someone and starting a conversation.
The transition will happen gradually rather than through an immediate removal of the existing interface. Bumble’s current subscriptions still include features tied to swiping, such as unlimited likes, SuperSwipes and Backtrack.
The company also plans to use more AI behind the scenes to improve matching and other parts of the experience. Wolfe Herd stressed that Bumble does not intend to turn the service into an AI-led dating experience.
Bumble Remains in a Turnaround
The product changes come while Bumble continues trying to stabilize its business. Second-quarter revenue fell 15.2% year over year to $210.5 million, although the result exceeded the company’s previous guidance and analyst expectations.
Paying-user declines remain a concern. In the first quarter, Bumble reported 3.2 million total paying users, down 21.1% from a year earlier, as the company worked to rebuild its product around higher-quality interactions rather than maximizing engagement volume.
Bumble is now betting that more deliberate matching, real-world social experiences and a future swipe-free interface can give users more reasons to stay on the platform and eventually meet offline.
Featured image credits: bookextraordinary.com
For more stories like it, click the +Follow button at the top of this page to follow us.