When serial entrepreneur Dennis Hefter’s two youngest sons were using dating apps back in 2020, they noticed a number of women were explaining their political views in their bios. This sparked Heftner’s idea to launch TruuBlue, a dating app for “socially progressive” singles.
“I thought, there are dating apps for Christians, ... dating apps for Jewish people,” Hefter said. “There’s actually dating apps for people who like dressing up like clowns. … There’s dating apps for everything.”
After researching the dating app market, Hefter found none specifically for conservatives or progressives, which he thought was odd given today’s political climate.
Halfway into developing TruuBlue, a dating app called The Right Stuff launched for conservatives. Boulder-based TruuBlue launched about a year later in mid-September.
Hefter and his sons aren’t the only ones noticing an increase in political affiliation mentioned on dating apps. A January 2023 survey conducted by American Perspectives found that most singles are less interested in dating people with opposing political views.
Referencing blue, which is associated with the Democratic Party, TruuBlue is intended for progressives, but everyone is welcome, Hefter said.
When signing up, TruuBlue asks users to rank their stance on various topics such as climate change and gun control. Users also add photos with captions and set their dating preferences, including gender, ethnicity and distance.
Users also complete and add icebreakers to their profile. For example, a user might be asked to finish the sentence “we’d get along if.” Rather than swiping to match with someone, TruuBlue users like a photo or a response to an icebreaker. Once you like something, you can immediately communicate with the other user.
“I don’t really view our app as an app for Democrats. It’s an app for people that are serious about these social issues,” said Hefter, who describes himself as a socially progressive person. “That doesn’t necessarily mean they are Democrat or Republican, although realistically, probably, there’s more Democrats than Republicans that support these issues. … I don’t want to create a political app. I wanted to create an app for people taking social issues seriously.”
TruuBlue also claims to be the first artificial intelligence-powered dating app.
“We are using AI in the [matching] algorithm, and that looks even beyond your profile,” Hefter said. “It can look at all of your communications with other people, what works, what didn’t, and we try to build a more holistic view of our members beyond just what they said in their profiles.”
TruuBlue’s dating app is live in Colorado but can be downloaded for free on the Apple Store and Google Play, regardless of a user’s geographic location.
Hefter said the app is starting in Colorado as a proof of concept. The startup plans to raise a Series A round before rolling out to users nationwide.
Having already raised a $500,000 million seed round from family and friends, Hefter said TruuBlue won’t raise its next round until it hits a critical mass or 5,000 users. As of late September, TruuBlue had about 700 users.
TruuBlue is Hefter’s eighth startup. His first business was an IT company in Pennsylvania that he sold in 1995. His other businesses range from digital marketing and software to sports equipment manufacturing and endodontic — root canal — practices.
“I find myself getting bored relatively quickly and then moving on to the next thing,” he said. “I think the longest I’ve ever had a company was seven years and that was the first one and then the other ones typically building for five years.”
TruuBlue isn’t the only dating app created in Colorado. Dateability, a dating app designed for people with disabilities and chronic illnesses, launched in October 2022.
