--- title: "Grindr Working on Chatbot You Can Sext With" description: "Gay dating platform Grindr is betting big on generative AI, and is working on an AI chatbot you can have sexually explicit chats with." date: "2024-03-29" modified: "2024-03-29" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/grindr-chatbot-sext" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" tags: - "ai chatbots" - "dating apps" - "grindr" - "the digest" --- # Grindr Working on Chatbot You Can Sext With ![Gay dating platform Grindr is betting big on generative AI, and is working on an AI chatbot you can have sexually explicit chats with.]() *\Image: Getty Images\* ## AI Boyfriend Queer dating platform Grindr is betting big on generative AI — and even the company's own employees are preparing for the worst. Following a disastrous two years of being publicly traded on the stock market, Grindr is hoping to move on by focusing on AI chatbots that you can sext, [*Platformer* reports](). And no, we're not talking about coy interactions with a heavily moderated ChatGPT. Grindr wants to have the chatbots "engage in sexually explicit conversations with users," according to the report. The company partnered with custom chatbot startup Ex-human in December. The plan at the time was to create "[AI wingmen]()," per *Bloomberg*, to help users date other living humans. But Grindr is now reportedly looking to take things a lot further. According to *Platformer*, the company is busy rewriting its terms of service to allow chatbots to be trained on a user's DMs if they consent, laying the groundwork for "AI boyfriends" that can flirt, sext, and be in a "relationship" with paying users. It's a big swing, especially considering the potential for abuse and harassment. And perhaps as expected, Grindr has already encountered its experimental chatbots offering racist opinions, per the report. And that shouldn't come as a surprise at this point. While we've seen other companies allow users to create "AI girlfriends," their efforts have been plagued by problems, from [enabling verbal abuse]() and [potentially inspiring gender-based violence]() to [concerning privacy pitfalls](). ## Grindr Stone Then there are the growing frustrations among users of dating apps with being overcharged. While the COVID-19 pandemic has turned out to be a boon for online dating apps, the industry has struggled to grow. Companies like Grindr and Tinder have been finding new ways to squeeze more money out of their existing users by offering [expensive subscriptions]() and paywalling basic features. Last month, Tinder owner Match Group [announced]() a deal with OpenAI to use its large language model ChatGPT to allegedly help out behind the scenes, writing code, designing the website, and analysis. Grindr is also trying to cash in on the trend with its "AI boyfriends" — but given the industry's track record and the considerable risks involved, it's anything but certain whether the new venture will work out. The company's stock had already plummeted more than 70 percent since late 2022, while its app has garnered a reputation for being an unstable and buggy mess. Despite a rocky past, investors are unperturbed. On Wednesday, [*Bloomberg* reported]() that Wall Street is optimistic about its future, issuing Grindr's first "buy rating." But whether this enthusiasm will survive a chaotic launch of a sexting AI chatbot feature is unclear at best. **More on dating apps:** *[Tinder Signs Deal to License ChatGPT]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()