Big Lie: Why Grindr’s New CEO Says It’s a Social Network and Not a Dating App
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Grindr’s newly installed CEO, George Arison, wants the company to be seen as more of a social network than a dating app. That’s not a distortion, it’s a blatant lie and its because the so called dating app which is the vector for virtually every ill facing the gay community today and it wants to be seen as palatable as they try to let Wall Street let Grindr LLC go public.
According to The Information: “George Arison begins conversations about Grindr with euphemisms. While gay men largely use the app to find potential nearby sexual partners, Arison—who was announced as Grindr’s new CEO Tuesday—prefers to say that people use the app for “casual dating” and “casual encounters.” In fact, Arison says the business’ potential is more like a ‘social network than a dating app.'”
Arison needs Wall Street to find Grindr palatable. The West Hollywood, Calif.–based firm is preparing to go public in a deal that would value it at $2 billion, more than three times what it was worth when an investment firm controlled by investor Raymond Zage acquired it two years ago. By some measures that valuation is also well above where comparable companies like Bumble and Match currently trade. And Grindr is hoping to go public at a time when few companies are doing so, given the recent stock market sell-off. Even fewer are merging with a special purpose acquisition company, as Grindr is.
The high stakes may be why he is dancing around the obvious source of the app’s allure—and healthy profits—over its 13-year history. “Will there be some investors who have discomfort with parts of what Grindr is? I’m sure there are,” he says. “
Grindr LLC, the dating app that specializes in connections for the LGBTQ+ community, has named George Arison its new chief executive officer, fulfilling a pledge to appoint someone who identifies with that group to lead the company as it prepares to go public.
Arison, 44, is the co-founder and former CEO of auto e-commerce marketplace Shift Technologies Inc. He will start at Grindr on Oct. 19 and shepherd the company through the process of listing on the stock market through a special purpose acquisition company later this fall.
“The mission at Grindr is so powerful for the sets of people I’ve been a part of and I’ve seen the power of that from the friendships I’ve built with people I’ve met” on the platform, Arison said in an interview.
Arison said his previous experience taking a private company public taught him about the importance of being clear and realistic about setting goals and financial projections. “We’ll approach that differently because from the beginning it’s going to be really crucial, and having those financial forecasting capabilities is really important,” he said.
“The mission at Grindr is so powerful for the sets of people I’ve been a part of and I’ve seen the power of that from the friendships I’ve built with people I’ve met” on the platform, Arison said in an interview.
Arison said his previous experience taking a private company public taught him about the importance of being clear and realistic about setting goals and financial projections. “We’ll approach that differently because from the beginning it’s going to be really crucial, and having those financial forecasting capabilities is really important,” he said.
Arison will take over on Oct. 19 as Grindr prepares to go public by merging with a special purpose acquisition company. In a statement Tuesday, Arison called Grindr, which had about 11 million monthly active users around the world last year, an “unbelievable business.”
“Their hard work and a laser focus on delivering great products to a starkly underserved market are inspiring, and deliver incredibly strong business results,” said Arison, who is openly gay.
He will take the wheel as the app reckons in the immediate term with its role in addressing the outbreak of monkeypox, which has been shown to spread primarily through sex and among men who have sex with men.
He also takes the reins after years of controversy that have at times complicated the identity and mission of the app, which fundamentally changed gay culture after it launched in 2009. In recent years, Grindr has faced accusations that it negatively affects the mental health of its users, poses an exploitation risk to minors and fuels “sexual racism.” The company told NPR last year that it takes seriously its responsibilities to prevent misuse and identify misconduct.
In 2018, BuzzFeed News uncovered that the company had been sharing its users’ HIV statuses and location data with two outside vendors. The night the BuzzFeed report broke, the company said it would put a stop to the practice. Later that year, internal strife at the company reached a fever pitch when the app’s then-president, Scott Chen (who left the company for Meta in 2020), made comments that appeared to suggest he believed marriage should be between only a man and a woman.
Leaders at Grindr have tried to move past the controversies with a number of initiatives, including Kindr, an effort it started in 2018 to combat racism on the app by updating its community guidelines.
“Everyone is entitled to their opinion. Their type. Their tastes. But nobody is entitled to tear someone else down because of their race, size, gender, HIV status, age, or — quite simply — being who they are,” says the Kindr page on the Grindr website.
Following concerns about exploitation, the app “refreshed” its Help Center, community guidelines and safety tips, among other measures. It also partnered with another company to integrate machine-learning algorithms to prevent the transmission of exploitation and abuse materials.
In 2016, the Chinese company Beijing Kunlun Tech acquired Grindr for $93 million. The company reportedly had plans to take Grindr public, but it ultimately divested its shares for $620 million after the U.S. raised concerns that China could use the information on the app to blackmail Americans.
The current deal to take Grindr public, which is set to take place later this year, was made public in May.
In addition to announcing a new CEO, Grindr also announced Tuesday that it will bring on a new chief financial officer, Vanna Krantz. Krantz, the CFO of the financial tech company Passport Inc., will start her new role on Sept. 26.
Grindr’s outgoing CEO and CFO, Jeff C. Bonforte and Gary C. Hsueh, will move into advisory roles.
