Swipe? Nah – maybe? Nah. Swipe? Maybe yes? Seems friendly enough, but what if they’re not? Is that what I want? How could I possibly know?

It’s unclear when dating apps started feeling like trying to keep a job, but it’s unanimous – they just do. Every week, more articles about dating-app burnout pop up on the Internet. It is reported that younger generations feel the most tired of endless swiping, with 80% of millennials and 79% of Gen Z admitting to feelings of fatigue associated with dating online.

Using dating apps often feels impersonal, and creating your own profile has long turned into a weird marketing exercise with hours spent on selecting pictures and honing in your bio. It’s interesting, too, how dating apps, designed to connect us, can actually make people feel lonelier. The more profiles you swipe, the more people blur into a faceless mass of “maybes” or “not-quites.” So why are dating apps so popular and so frustrating at the same time? We found three main reasons for this.

A lack of real connection 
With countless potential match options on dating apps, engaging in numerous identical conversations at the same time soon becomes tedious. After all, there's a limit to how many times you can ask someone their favorite color! Given the chances that the conversation will fizzle out, you're inclined to invest minimal energy in initial chats. Then, you find yourself trapped in a cycle: matching, having lifeless conversations, and ultimately never hearing from them again… only to match the next person, with little-to-no hope of a better outcome.

Endless swiping 
Have you seen so many profiles that everyone starts blending together like one giant TikTok algorithm of red flags and awkward mirror selfies? Relatable? Endless swiping can become demoralizing, and studies even show that the use of dating apps is often linked to increased anxiety, lower self-esteem, and frustration. People are left feeling like they’re auditioning for a part they never get, endlessly comparing themselves and their matches until they don’t even know who they are anymore.

Rigidity of expectations 
Dating apps often pressure you to know and disclose what you're looking for immediately. It goes even deeper than just defining if you’re looking for a long-term relationship or something more casual. The reason to go on a dating app is to try to find someone to date. However, most lasting relationships are found organically, when you aren't trying at all. Arguably, putting emphasis on dating from the get-go creates a rigidity and kills the element of surprise that is so fundamental to building social relationships. Here at Yubo, we try to bring serendipity and surprise back into online social interactions, allowing our users to forego labels and expectations when connecting with someone new.

There is something special about meeting someone new. You start talking with them – let’s say at a friend’s party, or in a gaming Discord channel – and you get to connect freely, without any pressure or expectations. Possibilities are truly endless: you can go on to become close friends after a while, or start meeting up every Saturday for a game of Among Us, or just never talk to them again.

Real connection takes time and often starts with the simplest forms of companionship. Think back to being a kid – when you went up to your new bestie in the playground, did you think about what they could do for you? Did you judge them on their jacket or wonder if you’d be friends five years down the line? No! They were there and you were here, and you wanted someone to chill with. From those simple beginnings, you made a connection that could last for the rest of your lives. Or not – and that was okay too. Here at Yubo, we want to recreate that magical serendipity that was a large part of our lives back when we were kids. So, how do we do it?

Multiple connection points 
While it’s possible to make friends whilst swiping on Yubo, it’s not the only way to meet new people on the app. The Live tab is one such place, where you can browse people having video and voice conversations in real life, or alternatively start your own and wait for other people to join! This allows for deeper connections like seeing someone’s face, body language and mannerisms, or hearing their voice, which can make you click a lot faster than matching and chatting via text messages. You can also find friends through our Fast Add feature, which forgoes swiping and sends out 100, 200 or 500 friend requests to random people on the app. Without the selection process, you can start building connections with people you wouldn’t normally swipe right on, allowing you to be surprised by the unexpected. You can explore without judging or evaluating, and it gives you a chance to relax, knowing you’re not being judged or assessed either.

No expectations 
Now that finding "the one" is off the table, there are quite a lot of options opening up before you. Talking and exploring in a relaxed setting is conducive to making connections you didn’t even know you needed. Going with the flow and letting the conversation shape your expectations, rather than the other way around, may be surprising, in a good way. Here at Yubo, we believe in online spaces that give us the possibility to play without the constant fear of being judged, allowing people to meet in a context where expectations are lower, but the potential for meaningful connection is higher. Social discovery apps let you hang out without the pressure of the never-ending series of first dates.

Here at Yubo, we prize one thing above all else – friendship. Maybe it’s time we all started connecting without the pressure to find “the one.” Maybe they’re not the one, but they could just be the best thing that happened to your weekend. Friendship apps encourage connections that bring joy, depth, and authenticity without the pressure of romance. And in a world that’s become so obsessed with finding “someone,” maybe the real victory lies in finding people who simply make life richer and more exciting.

Let go of your expectations to find unexpected connections on Yubo

Modern economies rely on technology to drive innovation and shape the future. With the tech industry always at the forefront of critical problem-solving, it is surprising that the lack of women in tech remains an issue. According to the Women in Tech Survey 2023, women make up only 26% of people who work in IT. The gender balance in the industry has certainly seen some improvement since 2019, when women made up only 19% of tech employees, but it is clear there is still a long way to go.

What prevents women from finding roles in tech?

There are multiple obstacles for women looking for their next role in the tech world. Some common grievances are the biases women face in male-dominated fields, a toxic “bro culture” that sometimes plagues the tech industry, the lack of inspirational role models and mentors, as well as a gender pay gap.

First of all, there are still some lingering biases when it comes to tech, such as it traditionally being a male-dominated field. It begins as early as childhood when boys are encouraged to pursue sciences and maths, while girls can be pushed into other fields, often humanities. Studies find that there are few gender differences when it comes to studying maths at school, so why is there a gender gap when it comes to studying sciences later in life? Arguably, this problem, at least partially, boils down to the need to conform – as children grow up, they become more aware of the stereotypes associated with femininity and masculinity, and learn to lean into them more.

The importance of role models and mentors in any given industry cannot be overstated. Finding a person in your field who you can look up to can inspire and assure you that your own path is possible. However, with only 26% of women working in tech fields, it can be challenging to find a female role model. It also means there is less advocacy and support for young women in tech by older female experts.

The pay gap is another obstacle for women trying to make a career in tech. Pay discrepancy is a universal problem for most industries, and the STEM field is, unfortunately, one of them. Researchers find that women in tech earn up to 28% less than their male colleagues, and only 8% of tech businesses were found not to have a gender-based pay discrepancy at all. Moreover, there can be limits to a woman’s career progression in tech, fuelled by gender stereotypes and biases.

So, why do we believe that lack of women in the tech industry is a problem? Similarly to underrepresentation in other fields, employing a uniform workforce can lead to some complex issues. Innovation thrives in environments where varied experiences, backgrounds, and viewpoints are shared and discussed. In other words, a lack of diversity often impedes innovation. Diverse teams are also better suited to creating products that are more inclusive of a broader audience.

Additionally, with AI taking the world by storm, it’s already been noticed that a lack of diversity among developers is leading to the creation of biased algorithms that are failing when it comes to recognising non-white or non-male faces. Unsurprisingly, only 22% in the employees of AI-related fields are women, highlighting the need for more diversity in tech.

At Yubo, we’re dedicated to closing the gender gap in tech. Right now, 33% of our team are women, with 53% of those in leadership roles, including our Head of Finance, Head of Legal, Head of People and Head of Safety. But we know there’s always room to grow - and that’s why we were happy to host the OutGeekWomen in Tech event at our headquarters in Paris!

Partnering with OutGeekWomen in Tech, we hosted a dynamic evening of networking for women in dev, product, data, and UI/UX on October 24th, 2024! Our aim was to create an innovative, inclusive, and empowering space led by talented women from across Paris. With over 70 women in attendance, it was a night filled with dynamic conversations, knowledge-sharing, and career insights. We were thrilled to showcase Yubo – our work, our team, and our office – and having a few leading tech companies join us made it even better!

At the event, Margaux Liquard, our Head of Safety, represented Yubo and opened the event with an inspiring keynote. She shared her journey, touching on the personal challenges of balancing motherhood with career growth and reflecting on her professional development at Yubo, where she and her team are building a safe, global platform for our community. Margaux also spoke about the support structures that make workplaces more welcoming for women, such as flexible and remote work options that enable a fulfilling work-life balance – even in fast-paced fields like tech. Her talk was a powerful reminder of the steps a company can take to support women in tech.

Yubo Event - Outgeek: Women in Tech

With this event under our belt, we’re even more excited about future opportunities to actively promote equality and support women in tech – at Yubo and beyond. Events like these are about more than networking – they’re a chance to uplift each other, build connections, and push for meaningful change in the industry. As Reshma Saujani, founder of Girls Who Code, said, “Tech is for anyone who wants to shape the future.” If shaping the future speaks to you, Yubo invites you to join us in making tech more inclusive and amplifying female voices across the field. Together, let’s create a more diverse and empowering industry for everyone.

In the meantime, feel free to check out our blog posts on supporting women-led businesses and how Yubo contributes to raising awareness about breast cancer.

Hosting A Women in Tech Event at Yubo: A Collaboration With OutGeekWomen

Real-Time Intervention on Social Video

Let’s Talk Identity

At Yubo, we’ve been focusing on building a place for Gen Z to make meaningful connections and have fulfilling conversations. That’s why we’ve been busy building features that help new users easily make groups of friends with common interests. More specifically, we want to encourage new users to express their hobbies and interests in their profiles and also explain that joining a live for the first time isn’t as high-stakes or intimidating as it may seem. 

Adding Tags at Sign-up = A More Personalized User Experience 

Users add tags to their profiles to show their new friends the latest topics that they’re keen to chat about. To make sure new users start off with plenty to discuss, we’ve included the tags feature in the account creation flow. In order for them to find the right tags to add to their profile, new categories have been launched– making it easier than ever to find everything from your favorite show or your favorite hobby. Already, this feature has been adopted by 65 percent of new users! 

We want our users to make friends with common interests, so it will now be possible to add friends by tags too! This new feature is super easy to access. Now, user’s top tags will appear directly in their “friends” tab so that all they need to do is click on them to find their future friends. 

This feature will also be available directly from users’ profiles. If a user comes across a profile with a  tag that interests them, they can click on it to find other users who share that interest. This feature is going to help users make valuable new connections and meaningful friendships. Not to mention that sharing the same interests is the perfect ice-breaking to start a new friendship! 

We Know Going Live can be Scary: So Let’s do a Test Run First 

Yubo Launches Express Sessions

Yubo is for all personality types,  from type A extroverts to the painfully shy. And no matter where someone falls on that spectrum, joining a live for the first time can seem intimidating. That’s why we added a new onboarding step that will differentiate between a watcher and a  streamer, and show users that they can join a livestream with their microphones and camera turned off. We hope that this improvement will show every user that they can socialize on Live without barriers, no matter what their comfort level is.

In Yubo's newest product update, we've added two new features: Adding friends by tag, and a Live test run when you create your account. We hope these new features will encourage new users to express their hobbies and interests in their profiles and also explain that joining a live for the first time isn’t as high-stakes or intimidating as it may seem. Adding friends by tag will enable users to make friends with common interests, and to show their new friends the latest topics they are looking to connect about.

Yubo Launches New Features: Add Friends by Tag

3 minutes read

- Written by Yubo Team

Adding Tags at Sign-up = A More Personalized User Experience

Making Friends Who Share your Interests

We Know Going Live can be Scary: So Let’s do a Test Run First

You may also like:

Let go of your expectations to find unexpected connections on Yubo

Hosting A Women in Tech Event at Yubo: A Collaboration With OutGeekWomen

Yubo Launches New Features: Add Friends by Tag

3 minutes read

.css-xtmmy3{display:none;}@media screen and (min-width: 30em){.css-xtmmy3{display:initial;}}- Written by Yubo Team

Adding Tags at Sign-up = A More Personalized User Experience

Making Friends Who Share your Interests

We Know Going Live can be Scary: So Let’s do a Test Run First

You may also like:

Let go of your expectations to find unexpected connections on Yubo

Hosting A Women in Tech Event at Yubo: A Collaboration With OutGeekWomen

- Written by Yubo Team