Bumble Will Replace Swiping Right With… Something
Bumble lets go of the punches. Rather than asking users to swipe right or left on a profile to confirm their interest or disinterest in a potential match, the dating app replaces it with something else, Axios reports. Whitney Wolfe Herd, CEO of Bumble, shared the change in an interview with the publication, along with the news that Bumble is completely removing one of its core features: an optional requirement that women message first in heterosexual matches.
“We’re going to say goodbye to swiping and hello to something that I believe is revolutionary for the category,” Wolfe Herd said in the interview. Details are vague on what will actually replace swipes, but based on Bumble’s recent announcements, there’s a good chance it will have something to do with artificial intelligence. In March, Bumble announced that it was testing an AI-powered dating assistant called “Bee,” capable of interviewing new users and recommending matches. Bumble also imagines that Bee could offer date recommendations or collect user feedback to inform future matches. Regardless of which solution the company ultimately replaces scans with, Axios says it will be available in Q4 2026, but only in select markets to start.
Swiping is the go-to interaction for Bumble’s competitor Tinder, although it’s not the only way dating apps attempt to connect users. Hinge doesn’t use swipes and allows users to do things like respond to a prompt or interact with a photo to start a conversation. Bumble initially differentiated itself by requiring women to message men first before a conversation could begin. The company has since explored other ways to create connections between matches, but Bumble’s classic approach has remained an option. This is also being dropped as part of this redesign. “We will not force one gender over another to do something first,” Wolfe Herd said, although apparently the “essence” of what the feature meant would endure, according to Axios.
It remains to be seen how swapping swipes will make the Bumble experience different, but one way or another, dating apps seem keen to reshape themselves around AI. Tinder, the most popular dating app in the United States according to a 2025 Statista survey, already incorporates AI features. The app can use AI to recommend profile photos. Tinder is also reportedly testing a feature that will allow AI to analyze users’ camera roll to get to know them better and, ideally, make better matches.
