Dating app Bumble unveils new features to boost women's safety

Dating app Bumble has released a new range of features designed to further improve safety for women on the platform.

Bumble launched in 2014 as a “women-first” dating platform, which gave women control over making the first move and initiating conversation on the app.

Now the company has announced an expansion to this approach, as part of a major app update and redesign, where users can utilise the new ‘opening move’ tool to set a question for their matches to answer as a way of starting the conversation.

Bumble will include a number of recommended opening moves, or users will be able to craft their own.

In addition, the app has added dating intentions badges to profiles, allowing users to show what they’re looking for.

“We have always believed that when you make dating better for women, you make it better for everyone," Lidiane Jones, Bumble’s chief executive, said.

“In listening to our community, many have shared their exhaustion with the current online dating experience, and for some, that includes making the first move.

“We’re also hearing from women that empowerment today is not only about control but it’s also about agency, and we’re excited to offer more choice in how women make the first move with our new opening moves feature.

“We want to evolve with our community, shifting from a fixed approach to giving women more options in how they engage.”

As a further part of its redesign and in an effort to boost compatibility, Bumble said it would also start highlighting common interests and shared favourite musical artists at the top of profiles to help users find potential matches faster.

The company said it was also updating its compatibility algorithms and had increased the minimum number of photos required on a profile.

Jones said the new features were designed to further improve safety for women and build on the app’s original aim of upsetting traditional gender roles and challenging existing dating rules.

“Bumble has been leading in addressing the challenges of online spaces, introducing industry-first features like Private Detector to identify unsolicited lewd images, AI and machine learning to identify scams and spam, and comprehensive community guidelines,” she said.

“This latest launch reflects the first step in our continued commitment to making dating better for women, creating space for people to establish relationship dynamics that work for them.”