SAN JOSE- A new online dating app restricted to users previously infected with Covid-19 has proven popular with singles anxious to mingle in a time of social-distancing.
The app, called “antibody & soul”, requires users to use their phones to photograph a copy of their positive serological test results from an approved lab during the signup process. Aside from that, it’s pretty much like any other dating app: Full of folks professing a love of travel, hiking and tacos, with plenty of shirtless men holding fish and women cautioning potential matches against the possibility of immediate hookups.
The app was created by two college dropouts from the Hudson Valley.
“We moved out to the Bay Area in March hoping to get involved with a startup and enjoy everything San Francisco has to offer,” said Chet Martin, 22, originally of Pine Plains, who lives in a $3300/month two-bedroom apartment in the Mission Bay neighborhood with roommate and fellow founder Elijah Ellison, 23. “What bad timing! We were stuck in our cramped apartment all spring going crazy.”
Both Martin and Ellison said they tried meeting new people on Meetup and Tinder, but found the results underwhelming.
“People this year are understandably wary of getting too close to strangers,” said Ellison. “But Zoom is no substitute for human contact.”
When antibody tests became widely available later in the spring, it occurred to them that if singles knew they couldn’t be infected by a prospective match, dating would be much easier. “It’s already common for conscientious people to insist their partner be tested for STIs before beginning a sexual relationship,” said Martin. “This isn’t that much different, really.”
Chelsea Henne, 33, of Modena, has been using the app for about six weeks now.
“Most of my friends are either married or live with a partner,” she said. “I live with my mom and I was concerned about possibly getting her sick, so I haven’t dated anyone since this all began. Actually not since last fall to be honest and that was… eh, long story.”
In that time, Henne said she has chatted with several men and gone on dates with a few of them.
So, any luck ending the drought?
“A lady doesn’t speak about such things,” said Henne. “But I will say this much… it has been nice to touch another human being.”
Henne said she hopes to find a “Corona Bae” to hunker down with by the fall when, second-wave or no, the few options for dating activities remaining (such as outdoor dining, scenic walks, or drive-in movies) are no longer feasible due to colder temperatures.
The app’s popularity has led to so-called “bug-chasing” whereby individuals purposely try to infect themselves with Covid-19 in anticipation of clearing the infection and being able to sign up and create a profile. Martin and Ellison say they don’t condone that sort of thing and will ban any user from who has engaged in the practice. To discourage it, and further montetize the app already valued at $10 billion, they say they plan to allow users who haven’t previously had Covid-19 to join, but only matching them with those who have, reasoning that they won’t be able to catch the virus from someone no longer capable of spreading it.
The cost of membership will be $69.99 per month, but Martin and Ellison believe the demand is there. “People are really hard up,” said Martin.
Mark Nesbitt, 30, of Ruby, said he plans to pay the fee to sign up.
“This was shaping up to be the year I got my shit together,” he said. “I quit using, got a new job, moved out of a bad situation. I was all set to finally put myself out there when this virus hit. It’s been a hard five months. I know a lot of people who feel the same way. Something like this is just what we need.”
