What is love?

Redesigning the online dating experience

Online dating has made it easier to meet people. But it seems more difficult to connect with them. Does swiping kill romance? Can algorithms predict better love matches than humans? Or does technology inhibit our ability to pay attention, be aware of our emotions, and empathize with one another?

My thesis explores some of these questions but ultimately I’m interested in studying how modern relationships are formed and finding opportunities to encourage human connection.

Online dating is here (and there is no escaping from it). It’s everywhere. But do we have to accept it as is? Or can we make it better? As a designer, I can’t help but ask these questions.

I am starting this blog because I’m uncovering some amazing insights and I wanted to dedicate a space to share my learnings. I’ll be spending the next 6 months analyzing online dating from multiple perspectives such as behavioural economics, politics, history, and design. I’ll also be actively testing my hypotheses as I go along by conducting a few social experiments. I might even prototype or curate some events. Hopefully I will emerge with some insights to share with you on how I can improve the online dating experience.

If you’re interested in my work, I encourage you to follow along. If you’d like to share or offer any of your dating stories, ideas, and thoughts, let’s chat! Reach out @ruthtupe.