Rashied also points out that many popular online dating platforms measure attraction rather than compatibility, especially those that rely heavily on photos.

“Because they have so much data, they can calculate the odds of how often people swipe, which lets them design a swiping experience to keep you hooked to the app. Just like the algorithms of social media newsfeeds, they really practise psychological manipulation!”

Of course, some online dating platforms have introduced limits to the number of matches one is presented in a day to circumvent that issue.

Regardless, it seems that algorithms cannot create perfect matches owing to inherent human flaws. People do not have enough self-awareness, they are complex and also fickle, observes M Nazri Muhd, CEO of MyFinB, a tech company providing artificial intelligence (AI) services.

“To predict compatibility, it has to involve more than just assessing likes or dislikes. This is because people are fickle most of the time, so AI algorithms have to be very dynamic and sophisticated. AI has to go into the social-emotional learning aspects. A set of behavioural, attitudinal and personality analyses is needed, which is then linked to the user’s [behaviour when conducting] online activities. This has to be measured over time and needs to be validated,” says Nazri.

How does a person feel about a situation and how does it differ from previous times? What are the reasons a person reacts this way asiandate Hesap NasД±l Silme? What is the likely behaviour of a person if a new event occurs? What are the factors that could change how the person feels? These are questions that the AI will have to grapple with.

There’s a real example where the couple had different opinions about having children and only found out about it after dating for two years

“Practitioners should not aim for a perfect match using AI but use it simply to understand humans better, be it for personal or work matters. We cannot depend on AI to tell us whether to love someone or not,” says Nazri.

Foo does not believe that there are good or bad algorithms. They are, after all, built based on the logic of the programmer. Instead, people should choose the dating platforms using algorithms that they agree with.

For instance, if you believe in the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), which is a personality test, and love languages, you can use MatchMde. But if you believe in star signs, MatchMde might not be the right platform, he says.

It’s interesting to consider his perspective, given that Foo suffered from “dating-app fatigue” before meeting his wife. “It was always very superficial. These apps don’t go deep enough to know a person and give good recommendations,” he says.

He eventually met his wife through a friend’s recommendation. Not everyone is lucky enough to have such a good connection, he notes. This inspired Foo to set up MatchMde to help others, albeit through algorithms and an online dating platform.

So, why does he still believe in technology? It offers as much relevant information as possible for users to make an informed decision without wasting too much time.

“Can you imagine asking someone on their first date whether they want to have children? We try to ask the difficult questions first and give you a report card so you don’t have to worry about such questions. The relationship went downhill from there,” says Foo.

Foo acknowledges that relationships are a combination of art and science, and MatchMde is mainly providing the latter for users

Meeting people offline is tough and takes a long time, he notes. “It’s all by chance. Even if you do meet someone, it’s always superficial at the first meeting. You have no inkling of the other person’s traits and it’s always about the physical appearance initially. Once you get to know a person, you have to go through a long stage of dating as you find out about their traits, nuances and bad habits.”