Can artificial intelligence be an efficient wingman?
Roman Khaves, cofounder and CEO of Rizz, thinks so. The AI relationship assistant app analyzes screenshots of conversations you’re having on different platforms—from Tinder to iMessage—and crafts reply ideas. Rizz has amassed thousands and thousands of downloads since launching in 2022, with an increasing number of competitors additionally rising into the relationship scene since.
Khaves lately spoke with the Related Press in regards to the demand for this sort of platform, how AI is getting used to search out in-person connections, and what guardrails are wanted to carry AI expertise into such an intimate a part of our lives. The interview has been edited for readability and size.
Q: How does Rizz work?
A: Rizz is an AI relationship assistant. Should you’re caught in a dialog otherwise you don’t know how one can open up on a relationship app, you possibly can pull out Rizz and add a screenshot of a specific profile or dialog you’re having bother with on that different platform. It provides you with tons of recommended replies—and likewise a technique on how you might begin the dialog or reply to sure issues.
The extra you employ Rizz, the extra it understands what kind of replies you want. And that trains the mannequin to enhance over time.
Q: Why launch this sort of app?
A: Three years in the past, I personally discovered myself caught in the midst of relationship app conversations. Generally, I might take a screenshot to ship to a few of my mates and say, “Hey, what do I say subsequent?” And we knew there needed to be a greater manner.
The second that ChatGPT hit the scene, that’s once we launched Rizz. We built-in the API expertise with our product to make it attainable. And we noticed instant traction. We’ve had greater than 7.5 million downloads so far, rising about 30% month over month, since launching in 2022. There’s clear demand for any such product.
Q: Who’re your greatest opponents?
A: I’d say at the very least 40% of our screenshots and conversations come from messaging apps like iMessage and Instagram. We get a whole lot of Instagram, which I might argue is the most important relationship app on this planet at this time—and Instagram lately added an AI function that may give you totally different variations of how one can rephrase a message, like extra humorous or witty ideas.
So, for now, Instagram is a big competitor. Tinder additionally has recommended openers. It’s nonetheless very totally different than what we do—we take it a step additional and we give customers a technique—however I believe these are the most important opponents, in addition to ChatGPT. And there’s many related apps now and new ones rising each single day.
Q: What would you say to of us who could also be involved about bringing AI into their relationship life? The place do there should be guardrails?
A: We’re not attempting to interchange human connection. We’re simply attempting to assist individuals get to the date within the first place—as a result of it’s exhausting on the market. Lots of people don’t even know how one can begin conversations on-line, and I believe AI helps increase that confidence.
Nonetheless, privateness and management is vital on this new world of AI. We may have constructed Rizz very in another way. We may have made it in order that Rizz would reply routinely or connect with the relationship apps—however we don’t do any of that. All customers are in charge of precisely what will get despatched out to their match. And we’re going to proceed constructing with these priorities in thoughts.
Q: What’s subsequent for AI and relationship?
A: A whole lot of the large relationship firms are excited about how one can leverage AI as a way to improve human connection on this house at this time. That’s additionally what we got down to do, and are nonetheless enhancing on.
Rizz is at present constructed that can assist you get off relationship apps as rapidly as attainable. Subsequent, we would need to enable you past the primary date, maybe with future date concepts or one thing like birthday reward concepts. It’s actually about supporting the consumer all through their journey.
—Wyatte Grantham-Philips, Related Press enterprise author