Meet Willow, the Dating App That Won’t Judge You By The Appearance

T listed below are a complete large amount of apps in the marketplace now for young people searching for love: Tinder, Bumble, and OkCupid, to call a couple of. Though their rationales vary—Tinder and Bumble are both concerning the swipe, but on Bumble, ladies result in the very first move, along with OkCupid you are able to get a grip on simply how much information you reveal up front—they all have one or more part of typical: Possible mates judge the other person considering appearance.

But Willow, a brand new software striking the App shop on Wednesday, is seeking a various approach. As opposed to swiping left or right in line with the first selfie the thing is, you’re prompted to resolve a couple of three questions—written by users—that are created to spark a conversation up. What’s more, users decide when and in case they would like to share photos along with other users; initially, the responses to these concerns are typical future times see.

The app’s creator Michael Bruch claims Willow places the “social” back social networking. Bruch, now 24, had been fresh away from ny University when he established the software this past year. He claims he had been trying to fill a void he noticed when working with apps that are dating centered on swipes in place of that which you like.

“You can match with a lot of individuals until you start talking to them, ” Bruch tells TIME that you think are good looking but you don’t really know much about them. “If I’m going to invest time with somebody i do want to know me. That people have actually one thing to talk about–that’s what’s essential to”

Bruch is hoping that same fascination with discussion is essential to many other young adults too. Thus far, Willow has gained some traction. Over 100,000 users downloaded the beta form of the application that launched in August, delivering on average three communications just about every day.

What’s more, folks are deploying it for over simply love that is finding. “It’s are more about social development than strictly dating, ” Bruch says. You can, and you may additionally put it to use to spark up an intimate conversation with some one that is significantly less than 30 kilometers away. “If you want to log on to an have actually a laid-back discussion about video clip games”

The form of the application released also includes a “Discover” feature that helps users search what’s trending and better sort through questions they’d be interested in answering wednesday.

It’s a fascinating approach offered the recognized shallow nature of today’s millennials—the Me Generation, as TIME’s Joel Stein pronounced in 2013. Today’s dating apps appear to feed within their narcissists that are inner. And it also’s much easier to make somebody down based on just their face instead of once you’ve started up a discussion. To observe how users reacted to pages without photos, OkCupid among the biggest online dating sites, hid profile pictures temporarily in January of 2013 dubbing it “Blind Date Day. ” They unearthed that their people had been more likely to answer very first communications during the period, nevertheless the moment the pictures were turned right back on, conversations ended–like they’d “turned regarding the bright lights during the club at midnight, ” wrote one Chris Rudder, among the site’s founders.

Even though notably depressing result, some millennials are finding that the stress of placing that person available to you for the public to guage may be intimidating—and in certain instances, dangerous. Only one glimpse in the jerky messages published towards the Instagram account Bye Felipe (which aggregates negative communications ladies have online) provides a beneficial sense of how difficult it could be for most people, but especially for females, wanting to navigate for the reason that space that is visual. Individuals may be aggressive, fetishizing, and downright cruel.

Apps like Bumble look for to aid females circumvent that by placing the charged energy of striking up discussion in solely within their arms. But Willow desires to replace the focus completely, through the means some body appears as to the his / her passions are. “If your photo just isn’t being blasted available to you, the total amount of harassment and communications you’re likely to get the break off is likely to be reduced, ” Bruch claims.

On its surface, the app’s mission sounds just like a cheesy line from the rom-com: a hapless sap whining that they desire some one would just take desire for their ideas rather than passion.com their appearance. But, Bruch and Willow’s other founders are hoping it offers carved a spot one of the variety apps that focus on the millennial life that is generation’s.