Tinder is all about making a strong first impression based on a user's profile photo. And now the popular dating app is making sure that the best picture is displayed when different users come swiping by.
Tinder announced a new feature on Thursday, Oct. 13 that uses artificial intelligence to automatically put a user's best selfie up front and center.
Called Smart Photos, the feature works by using an algorithm that continuously tests the multiple profile pics posted by a user to find the one that stands out the most to potential matches. The algorithm evaluates which image is the best by alternating between them and notes the response it gets as other users swipe either left or right for that particular user.
Since it is always at work, Smart Photos will continue to get smarter over time as more users swipe past.
Taking into account both the general popularity of a photo and the potential match's preferences, Smart Photos then automatically features the best profile photo to be displayed first.
This means that a photo where the user is working out might be displayed first if the potential match typically likes fitness photos, or a photo where the user is posing with their dog will be displayed first for another user who always swipes right for dog lovers.
It could be hard to figure out which profile photo to feature as the main one, and how often a user should change their pic. This new feature takes the hassle, headache and pressure away from finding what other people would see as the best image. And since we are often our own toughest critics, users can just put their faith in technology that the algorithm will choose the right one.
According to Tinder's resident sociologist Jess Carbino, users tend to swipe left more when they see photos that include the person not smiling, having their face covered even slightly, with a group of people, wearing a hat and wearing glasses.
It's safe to say Smart Photos will probably not feature these types of profile pics as the main one.
Each day, there are 26 million matches made on Tinder worldwide where the app is available. So who knows, it could even lead to more matches.
In its testing, Tinder found that those who used Smart Photos had a 12 percent increase in the amount of matches they made.
"First impressions matter," Sean Rad, founder and CEO of Tinder said in a statement. "With Smart Photos, we're empowering users to put their best foot forward when forming new connections by implementing a sophisticated algorithm. This our latest innovation to improve profiles, which ultimately increase matches."
Smart Photo's algorithm was developed during a Tinder hackathon event held last January with the goal for users to "make the most of their profile photos on the app."
Tinder users have a choice as to whether or not to turn this feature on. They can do so by toggling Smart Photos in the Profile section of the dating app.
