date-ideas
(2)
Candle
Candle is a San Francisco-based consumer social app that helps couples and close friends grow closer in about five minutes a day through one shared, random challenge - a question, debate, drawing or photo prompt, mini game, or local date idea. Founded by ex-Apple engineer Alex Ruber and ex-Twitter/Asana engineer Parth Chopra, the Y Combinator (Fall 2024) startup pivoted from an AI shopping tool and reached over a million users and a $1M+ annual revenue run rate within roughly six months of launch.
The Nudge
The Nudge is a San Francisco company that texts its members curated plans for real-world fun - hikes, date ideas, restaurants, events and hidden gems in their city. Founded by siblings John and Sarah Peterson in 2018, it began as a $9/month SMS subscription pitched as an 'anti-startup' to get people off their phones, and has since grown into an AI-powered advisor and locals-only social network with roughly a million users across cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Austin and New York.