Bumble pushes swipe-free strategy as it expands in-person meetup features

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Bumble’s swipe-free meetup strategy

Highlights

Bumble plans to expand real-life, swipe-free meetups via its new 'Plans' app feature, targeting younger users and prioritizing deliberate connections.
CEO Whitney Wolfe Heard says Bumble will gradually shift away from swiping toward community-based group events and more intentional engagement, aligning with Gen Z preferences.
Bumble remains in turnaround mode as Q2 revenue drops 15.2% year over year to $210.5 million and the Q3 outlook indicates declining paying customers.

Bumble outlines product shift after early Plans tests

As reported by TechCrunch, Bumble discusses the early performance of Plans during its second-quarter earnings call and says it intends to lean further into real-life experiences. Chief Executive Whitney Wolfe Heard says the new app delivers promising results in initial tests over the past few months, as the company explores ways to connect users in low-pressure group settings rather than through rapid swiping.

Plans is designed to help people meet others in their communities over small-group drinks and dinners at local venues, building friendships that could later develop into romantic relationships. Bumble says users can keep chatting through its app without needing to swipe or share phone numbers, positioning the reduced emphasis on swiping as a better fit for younger audiences.

Wolfe Heard also says Bumble is developing a new interaction model intended to replace the swipe over time. She describes the approach as moving away from speed and volume toward fewer, more deliberate signals, while adding that the transition is gradual so it does not disrupt the existing platform ecosystem.

Gen Z preferences and turnaround pressures shape strategy

Bumble’s comments add to signs of a wider change in online dating, after Tinder also signals a stronger focus on in-person events this week. Wolfe Heard says group socializing is becoming more important in how Gen Z prefers to meet, and frames Bumble as a bridge from meeting to socializing and then dating.

The company has already tested adjacent social formats through Bumble BFF, its friendship-focused app, which has shown some traction with Gen Z women. Bumble now appears to be extending that logic further by blending community-based meetups with its core dating platform and using more AI tools behind the scenes to improve outcomes, while stressing that the app is not becoming an AI-driven experience.

The strategy unfolds while Bumble remains in a turnaround phase despite beating earnings expectations in the second quarter. Revenue falls 15.2% year over year to $210.5 million, and the stock comes under pressure after the company’s third-quarter forecast points to a decline in paying customers.

Grindr’s expanded AI strategy highlights how dating platforms are using the technology not just in user-facing tools, but also to speed up product development and improve monetization. Our earlier coverage noted that Grindr paired these operational gains with tests of a new premium subscription tier, pointing to a broader push across the sector to find new growth levers beyond traditional app mechanics.

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