Flirt and hookup app fake — Find Your Soulmate in a Digital World

Mayers, an app developer living in Brooklyn, had met all of his previous partners in person the old-fashioned way.

But last summer, his ex broke up with him, and newly single, he decided to give online romance a shake.

Mayers spent a month on Hinge.

He got advice from his friends and tips about profile photos, spent all day writing personalized messages, and even tried paying for a premium account.

But by the end of it, all Mayers found was disappointment.

It felt like the apps just werent for me, he said.

But Mayers is a builder, and he thought of a novel solution.

He made a dating app that was just for him.

Literally, for him and no one else.

Its called Flirt With Los. Theres no algorithm recommending an endless stream of polished photos.

There are no Super Likes to consider.

The app doesnt try to sell you subscriptions when you run out of swipes.

There arent any swipes to begin with.

Theres only one profile to choose from.

You open the app, type in your Twitter or Instagram username, and there he is.

Its a picture of Mayers with two options: flirt or pass. Flirt With Los is worth a download if youre single.

You just might find the love of your life.

The Internet promised to bring us together, but 30 years in, it seems like its driving us apart.

For many, the apps and devices that fill our lives are alienating things even while the web offers an unprecedented kind of interpersonal connection.

Dating apps are a prime example.

Millions of single strangers are looking for love online, but more people than ever before say its hard to find a date.

But in a world where technology draws up strange, unwritten barriers between us, Flirt With Los goes in a different direction.

Its a kind of direct one-on-one connection that almost no other app can offer.

Its unfiltered self-expression.

The app gives you a selfie of Mayers, standing confidently with his head cocked to the side, looking into a mirror at a clothing store.

Hes wearing a t-shirt, a gold chain, patent leather shoes, and what looks like a skirt.

Not your thing?

Try a different app.

If you hit pass, it brings up a photo of Mayers crying and asks you to try again.

When you hit the flirt button, and its hard to resist, it brings up a series of prompts.

Hey los, vibing your style hmu someday? or Glowin much?

Magic on point. If they arent to your liking, you hit refresh and it generates more.

Mayers wanted to eliminate the stage fright that comes with a blank text box.

I just want you to pick something that resonates as flirty and interesting.

It doesnt have to be about finding the perfect words, its just a moment of connection, he said.

In 2023, Mayers challenged himself to release a new app every month for a year.

Part of it was about beefing up his coding skills, but he was also exploring a brand new way to think about making software.

Flirt With Los might feel like a jokeuntil he slides into your DMs.

Screenshot: Flirt With Los.

I spent a lot of time trying to resolve these two parts of myself, the part of me that has this CEO, builder kind of energy, and the side of me that feels like a rapper and just wants to make art, Mayers said.

I wanted to see if I could drop apps the way other people put out mixtapes. Lots of tech companies build their business around connection, but by turning apps into art projects, he takes it a step further.

Mayers wants his apps to connect you with him, or at least his unusual form of personal expression.

Mayers went through several different iterations, some more successful than others.

He released a reminder app called Intentional that offers personalized encouragement based on how you describe your to-do list.

He found users learned to phrase their tasks based on the kind of feedback they wanted from the app.

Then there was postypost, an unhinged social media app that uses AI to rewrite your posts once a day based on an ever-changing cycle of themes.

It lets you express yourself without worrying about sounding clever and adds a bizarre layer to your social connections.