Haliey Welch, the 22-year-old who went viral for her “Hawk Tuah” video, has managed to show her temporary second of fame right into a full-fledged profession. In just some months, Welch has quickly risen to fame, amassing round 5 million followers throughout varied social media platforms.
After not too long ago releasing her personal podcast titled “Talk Tuah,” she’s now venturing into the tech world with a brand new AI-powered courting recommendation app referred to as Pookie Instruments.
Launched on the App Retailer this week, Pookie Instruments presents a spread of options geared toward Gen Z singles, akin to an AI chatbot to assist with dialog starters and common courting recommendation, outfit suggestions for dates, tricks to improve your courting profile, and even a zodiac compatibility characteristic.
The app is launching at a time when many younger daters have complaints concerning the present on-line courting tradition, which is tormented by ghosting, scams, and different challenges. Some customers have even turned to AI instruments like ChatGPT for courting recommendation, utilizing prompts to generate whole conversations. Main courting platforms Bumble and Tinder have additionally launched AI instruments.
Whereas Welch will not be the primary content material creator to launch an app, it’s uncommon for somebody to do it so early of their profession, which might sign creators have gotten anxious concerning the sustainability of their success. Extra established influencers, akin to Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) and David Dobrik, have beforehand launched their very own apps.
TechCrunch spoke (or, talked tuah) with Welch and mentioned her new app, which is called after a cute nickname she calls her boyfriend.
“I [was on] Bill Maher’s podcast, and it was actually one of his ideas he gave me,” Welch stated. “He kind of pushed me, in a way, saying I should be a relationship coach. And so we came up with the idea. … This app is the easiest way for them to find their forever Pookie.”
To construct the app, Welch partnered with Ben Ganz, founding father of Final AI Studio, an AI buyer help automation platform.
In principle, Welch’s app looks like a enjoyable and promising idea tailor-made for these navigating the world of courting and relationships. It resembles different AI-driven relationship teaching instruments, producing responses to all kinds of relationship questions, whether or not you’re in search of recommendation on communication, battle decision, or just tips on how to have an pleasing date.
One standout characteristic is its capability to counsel artistic date concepts based mostly in your location and whether or not it’s your first date or your tenth time seeing the particular person. Moreover, the app presents outfit suggestions that can assist you costume appropriately for various courting eventualities, whether or not it’s an informal espresso date or a sublime dinner. It may possibly additionally analyze your courting app profiles and supply suggestions, akin to participating prompts or suggestions for including extra pictures that exhibit your persona. Pookie’s “Flirt Meter” evaluates your textual content messages on a scale of 0 to 100 to find out their flirtatiousness.
When it was introduced that the Hawk Tuah lady would offer courting recommendation by a brand new app, we anticipated the chatbot to embody her signature humor and bluntness. Nonetheless, upon testing Pookie Instruments’ AI chatbot, it grew to become obvious that the responses have been generic and lacked the distinctive persona that we anticipated. In consequence, it felt strikingly much like ChatGPT and different present AI instruments.
In accordance with Ganz, nonetheless, they’re engaged on coaching the mannequin through the use of transcripts from the podcast.
Two of the instruments could also be thought-about controversial, nonetheless: “Bald Predictor” and “Height Detector.”
Bald Predictor works by analyzing a photograph of an individual looking for potential patterns of hair loss. Peak Detector makes use of proportions and environment to estimate peak.
Each of those AI instruments look like a response to frustrations expressed by some girls concerning males who misrepresent their peak on courting profiles or disguise their hair loss in pictures. Some girls are already utilizing ChatGPT to name out males for mendacity about their peak.
Nonetheless, the instruments may come throughout as mean-spirited and will perpetuate the stigma that brief and bald males are inferior.
Welch maintains that the instruments are meant to be lighthearted. However she did point out that, as a 5’8” lady, her favourite device is the peak detector.
And, as with every AI know-how, the Peak Detector isn’t 100% correct and solely gives an estimated guess. Our testing yielded blended outcomes, however one ended up being simply 2 inches off from the particular person’s actual peak, taking a number of issues into consideration, just like the counter tops subsequent to the particular person and the ceiling peak. After we examined the Bald Predictor, the AI couldn’t decide the likelihood of baldness from a number of the photos.
Welch and Ganz plan to introduce new options sooner or later by collaborating with podcast visitors and different content material creators, though they didn’t specify which options can be added. Notable figures akin to Holly Madison and Whitney Cummings have appeared on Discuss Tuah, which can entice extra customers to the app.
Pookie Instruments operates on a subscription mannequin; it prices $7 per week or $50 per 12 months. There’s additionally a three-day free trial.
