The company behind Hinge and Tinder has a platonic video app. Can it help cure our loneliness epidemic?

Match Group’s portfolio has overtaken the dating market in the U.S. with its star apps Tinder and Hinge. Could it replicate that success by making platonic connections over video?

The company recently rolled out Azar, its one-on-one random video chat app, in the United States after launching in Europe earlier this year. To date, Azar has seen strong interest among Gen Z users, CEO Linda Kim says. Sixty percent of its users globally are Gen Z, Fast Company has learned. That age group specifically, she adds, “is really looking for that instant, authentic connection.”

Azar’s premise is simple: A user provides their name and age to create an account. They can set filters, like a beauty filter or background, and are then matched with another user who is online. It’s free to use, but users who want to match with someone of a specific gender or in a specific location have to pay for those a la carte offerings.

The app’s formal introduction to the United States comes at a time when Americans are lonelier than ever. U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy declared a national loneliness and social isolation epidemic throughout the country in 2023, calling for Americans to invest in social connection similar to how we’ve focused on the obesity or the addiction crisis. Evidence has shown that loneliness is linked to a variety of physical and mental health issues, including depression, dementia, cardiovascular disease, stroke, and substance abuse.

The Surgeon General’s advisory says that Americans have been becoming less socially connected for decades. Trust in major institutions is at a near history low, and levels of polarization are at near highs. Social media use is also exploding, while the number of close friendships have declined. “Helping to combat loneliness is a great mission for us,” Kim says in an interview with Fast Company.

Azar has a wide geographical footprint in Asia, but its hoping that success translates into the U.S. and European markets. The app’s total monthly active user base rose 14% year-over-year globally in the third quarter to 9.5 million, and paying users were up 29% year-over-year to 600,000. Overall, it has facilitated over 100 billion video chats. “We believe Azar can attract users, especially Gen Z, looking for a more spontaneous and casual experience,” Match Group said in in third quarter earnings report.

Match Group will have to prove that one-on-one video chatting can be a successful venture.

“Azar has just entered the U.S. market which will be a critical market for success for the app to become a truly global brand,” Match Group CFO Gary Swidler said in a November earnings call.

Azar was originally created by Hyperconnect, a South Korean social media platform Match Group acquired in 2021 for $1.73 billion. At the time, the COVID-19 pandemic was roaring across the globe and keeping people inside. Match Group, which relied on people getting out and dating, shifted to a more digital-friendly strategy and invested in audio and video tools to enable online dates.

It’s not clear how many users actually used video dating tools, but the companies were extremely bullish at the time of the offerings. However, as social trends returned to normal, people proved that in-person connections were more important.

In 2023, Hinge quietly sunsetted its in-app audio and video calling feature. Match Group earlier this year discontinued livestreaming on its dating apps. The dating market overall has been in a rut. As of Tuesday afternoon, shares of Match Group were down nearly 13.5% year to date.

To be sure, Azar isn’t a dating app. Users who want social connection may be more willing to hop online and chat with a stranger in this instance.

“As we continue to expand in the U.S., we’re not just bringing another platform, but really providing a gift of instant human connection,” Kim says. “We really have a potential to impact people’s lives and really help to combat loneliness.”

Safety is also a potential issue. The premise of Azar echoes back to the online millennial chat platforms like Omegle and Chatroulette, which have both drawn sexual predators. Azar also does not have age verification tools in place.

Azar, backed by a giant conglomerate, likely has stronger resources in place to detect and stop bad actors on the platform. It’s also benefitting from the rise in artificial intelligence, which could ward off nonconsensual activity. The platform also has human moderators and lets users report inappropriate content.

“We have strict community guidelines that we make available to all of our users,” Kim says. “Our moderation helps to enforce those guidelines, both automated and non-automated tools that we continue to invest in to ensure that these bad actors or inappropriate content is removed from the platform.”