The days of talking into a mirror to psych yourself up to ask someone on a date have given way to artificial intelligence.
Yoodli, the Seattle-based AI-enabled software platform that analyzes speech to offer tips for improving communication skills, wants to help users land a date and carry on a better conversation on that date.
Just in time for Valentine’s Day, it’s less like a scene from the movie “Her,” and more focused on real human interaction.
The company’s new dating coach adds to its list of previous offerings, including helping startup founders prepare to make a VC pitch; and guiding job candidates through potential interview questions.
“Our goal with Yoodli always has been to give people the courage to speak during any crucial conversation. Asking your crushes out on a date is no different,” said Esha Joshi, co-founder and head of product at the startup, which was founded in 2021 at the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence (AI2) incubator.
“Yoodli’s AI dating coach helps you believe in yourself, take the plunge, ignite connections, and hopefully watch your dating game soar,” Joshi added.
Joshi walks viewers through how the tech works in a new Yoodli demo video (below).
In real time, the AI coach responds to the Joshi’s questions, and afterward rapidly analyzes voice and visual data to create a review video and transcript of the conversation. It offers suggestions for how to clean up the speech or ask more relevant questions.
Using AI to do all that removes a number of barriers that a date-seeker might encounter trying to practice alone or with another human. Joshi listed some of the AI’s benefits:
- Provides a judgment-free space for practicing and building confidence because many individuals experience social anxiety when approaching someone for a date.
- Offers a risk-free environment to simulate and handle rejection.
- Tailors coaching to individual needs for a unique dating journey.
- Guides users through dating scenarios to glean practical insights and tips for a more polished approach.
- Offers real-time coaching on pacing, conciseness, and talk time to practice and boost confidence. Immediate feedback helps refine conversational techniques.
Yoodli co-founder and CEO Varun Puri joked that landing a date is “infinitely harder than landing a VC pitch.”
In his own chat demo during an interview with GeekWire, Puri chose “frustrated” for the personality type of his AI practice crush. His request for a Valentine’s date went a little sideways as the AI rejected his initial ask.
‘Our goal with Yoodli always has been to give people the courage to speak during any crucial conversation.’
— Esha Joshi, Yoodli co-founder
“I’m funny and charming. I’m a startup founder,” Puri shot back at the simulated recipient. “I just thought it’d be nice because I was feeling lonely and nobody was hanging out with me.”
“You think being funny and charming is enough to win me over? And being a startup founder?” the Yoodli bot said. “Well, guess what? I don’t need to fill another void in your life just because you’re feeling lonely.”
While he admits that Yoodli is having some fun with its tech for the sake of the holiday, helping people with a deep-rooted insecurity is at the core of what Yoodli does.
“Getting feedback in a private, judgment-free way is extremely hard, especially if you’re nervous and you’re insecure,” Puri said. “Dating can be stressful, and it’s weird to ask somebody for help or to simulate a date conversation with you.”
In the end, Yoodli can clean up your speech, help with eye contact and posture, and perhaps generate some confidence. But it can’t tell you what to wear or ride along on the date.
“When it comes to fashion tips, restaurant choices, and wine expertise, your personal touch and friends’ advice are important,” Joshi said. “Yoodli is here to elevate, not dictate!”
