Hinge CEO Justin McLeod is stepping down from his role to launch a new AI dating product called Overtone.
Match Group, the dating giant that owns apps like Hinge, Tinder, and OkCupid, is backing Overtone with pre-seed financing and plans to take a “substantial ownership position,” according to a press release.
With Match’s support, Overtone was incubated as a project inside of Hinge. McLeod and a dedicated team spent the year developing the idea of Overtone, which is described as “an early-stage dating service focused on using AI and voice tools to help people connect in a more thoughtful and personal way.”
Industry Context Around AI in Dating (insert here)
McLeod isn’t the only dating app founder branching out into new, standalone AI experiences. Whitney Wolfe Herd, founder of Bumble, said she wants to use AI to make “the world’s smartest and most emotionally intelligent matchmaker in existence.” Last year, Wolfe Herd proposed the idea of singles using AI to stand in for themselves and date other people’s AIs.
It’s not yet clear how Overtone will differentiate itself from other dating apps, which have been experimenting with AI features to address growing fatigue with online dating, especially among Gen Z.
Tinder has reported nine straight quarters of paying-subscriber declines and has leaned into AI with features designed to boost matches. Hinge launched another AI feature this week called “Convo Starters,” aimed at helping users move beyond routine small talk. Tinder and Facebook Dating have also tested AI-powered matching to counter “swipe fatigue.”
Data Access and Privacy Concerns (insert here)
Some newer AI-driven ideas have raised concerns about how much control users give up. Match CEO Spencer Rascoff said last month that a major part of Tinder’s 2026 product roadmap will include a feature called Chemistry, which — with user permission — will access camera rolls to better understand users.
Leadership Transition at Hinge (insert here)
McLeod founded Hinge in 2011 as a dating app designed to focus more on relationships than casual encounters. The company was acquired by Match Group in 2019. Jackie Jantos, Hinge’s president and chief marketing officer, will take over as CEO. McLeod will stay on in an advisory role through March.
The app is currently on track to reach $1 billion in revenue by 2027.
Hinge’s Continued AI Strategy Under New Leadership (insert here)
This summer, TechCrunch spoke with Jantos at SXSW London about how Hinge plans to engage Gen Z, a demographic increasingly skeptical about online dating.
“This is a generation that has grown up with a deep understanding of how digital experiences are created and what they are trying to get out of them,” Jantos said.
She added that Gen Z expects transparency and authenticity from digital brands. While some see tension between that expectation and the growing use of AI, Hinge’s AI recommendation feature launched in March led to a 15% increase in matches and contact exchanges in the first quarter of this year.
“Our focus will remain on intentional innovation that is grounded in culture, creativity, and a deep understanding of how people connect today,” Jantos said in a statement.
Featured image credits: Wikimedia Commons
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