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| name        = Whitney Wolfe Herd
| name        = Whitney Wolfe Herd
| birth_name  = Whitney Wolfe
| birth_name  = Whitney Wolfe
| image        = TechCrunch Disrupt San Francisco 2018 - day 2 (30647055838).jpg
| caption      = Wolfe Herd in 2018
| birth_date  = {{Birth date and age|1989|7|1}}
| birth_date  = {{Birth date and age|1989|7|1}}
| birth_place  = [[Salt Lake City]], [[Utah]], U.S.
| birth_place  = [[Salt Lake City]], [[Utah]], U.S.
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'''Whitney Wolfe Herd''' (née '''Wolfe'''; born July 1, 1989) is an American entrepreneur and business executive who founded the dating application [[Bumble (app)|Bumble]] and serves as its executive chair and chief executive officer. Before creating Bumble, Wolfe Herd was a co-founder of the dating app [[Tinder (app)|Tinder]], where she served as vice president of marketing and is credited with helping drive the platform's early growth, particularly among college-age users.<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2015-01-29 |title=Whitney Wolfe Says Goodbye to Tinder, Hello to Bumble |url=http://www.labusinessjournal.com/news/2015/jan/29/whitney-wolfe-says-goodbye-tinder-hello-bumble/ |work=Los Angeles Business Journal |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> After a contentious departure from Tinder that included a sexual harassment and discrimination lawsuit, Wolfe Herd launched Bumble in 2014 with a central design principle: women must initiate conversation in heterosexual matches.<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2015-04-12 |title=Bumble: the dating app where women call the shots |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/apr/12/bumble-dating-app-women-call-shots-whitney-wolfe |work=The Guardian |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> The app grew rapidly, and Wolfe Herd took the company public in February 2021, becoming one of the youngest women to take a company to an initial public offering on a major U.S. stock exchange.<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2021-02-11 |title=Bumble IPO: CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd |url=https://fortune.com/2021/02/11/bumble-ipo-ceo-whitney-wolfe-herd-bmbl-stock-shares-interview-app-initial-public-offering/ |work=Fortune |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> She was named to the ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' 100 list of the most influential people in the world in 2018.<ref>{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe Herd: The 100 Most Influential People of 2018 |url=https://time.com/collection/most-influential-people-2018/5217594/whitney-wolfe-herd/ |publisher=Time |date=2018 |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
'''Whitney Wolfe Herd''' (née '''Wolfe'''; born July 1, 1989) is an American entrepreneur and business executive who founded the dating application [[Bumble (app)|Bumble]] and serves as its executive chair and CEO. Before launching Bumble, she was a co-founder and Vice President of Marketing at [[Tinder (app)|Tinder]], where she played a central role in building one of the first mainstream mobile dating platforms. Wolfe Herd's departure from Tinder in 2014 was accompanied by a high-profile sexual harassment lawsuit that drew widespread attention to workplace culture in the technology industry. She subsequently founded Bumble, a dating app distinguished by its requirement that women initiate conversations in heterosexual matches — a design choice rooted in Wolfe Herd's stated goal of shifting power dynamics in online dating.<ref name="guardian">{{cite news |last=Garber |first=Megan |date=2015-04-12 |title=Bumble: the dating app where women call the shots |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/apr/12/bumble-dating-app-women-call-shots-whitney-wolfe |work=The Guardian |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> In February 2021, Wolfe Herd took Bumble public on the [[Nasdaq]], becoming one of the youngest women to take a company public in the United States.<ref name="fortune-ipo">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2021-02-11 |title=Bumble IPO: CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd on BMBL stock, shares, and the app's initial public offering |url=https://fortune.com/2021/02/11/bumble-ipo-ceo-whitney-wolfe-herd-bmbl-stock-shares-interview-app-initial-public-offering/ |work=Fortune |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> She was named to the ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' 100 list of most influential people in 2018 and has been recognized as one of the most prominent figures in the technology and dating industries.<ref name="time100">{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe Herd: The 100 Most Influential People of 2018 |url=https://time.com/collection/most-influential-people-2018/5217594/whitney-wolfe-herd/ |publisher=Time |date=2018 |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


== Early Life ==
== Early Life ==


Whitney Wolfe was born on July 1, 1989, in [[Salt Lake City]], [[Utah]].<ref>{{cite news |date=2017-03-18 |title=Bumble, the Feminist Dating App |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/18/fashion/bumble-feminist-dating-app-whitney-wolfe.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> She grew up in Salt Lake City before attending college in [[Texas]]. During her undergraduate years at [[Southern Methodist University]] (SMU) in [[Dallas]], Wolfe demonstrated early entrepreneurial interests. While still a student at SMU, she launched a clothing line called Tender Heart, which sold bamboo tote bags with proceeds directed toward areas affected by the [[2010 Haiti earthquake]] and the [[Deepwater Horizon oil spill|BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico]].<ref>{{cite web |title=SMU Senior Whitney Wolfe Launches Second Business, Clothing Line Tender Heart |url=http://www.smudailycampus.com/news/smu-senior-whitney-wolfe-launches-second-business-clothing-line-tender-heart |publisher=SMU Daily Campus |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> The venture attracted the attention of celebrity supporters and demonstrated Wolfe's ability to blend commerce with social causes, an approach that would later characterize her work at Bumble.
Whitney Wolfe was born on July 1, 1989, in [[Salt Lake City]], [[Utah]].<ref name="biography">{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe Helped Make Tinder a Success. Then She Created Its Fiercest Competitor. |url=https://www.biography.com/business-leaders/a66106070/swiped-true-story-whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble |publisher=Biography |date=2025-09-22 |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> She grew up in Utah before relocating to [[Texas]] for her higher education. Details about her family background and upbringing prior to college remain limited in publicly available sources.


After graduating from Southern Methodist University with a bachelor's degree, Wolfe moved into the technology sector. Her early career trajectory brought her into contact with the founding team behind what would become Tinder, one of the most consequential mobile applications of the 2010s.<ref>{{cite news |date=2015-01-01 |title=Tinder Co-Founder Whitney Wolfe and Bumble |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/tinder-co-founder-whitney-wolfe-and-bumble-2015-1 |work=Business Insider |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
While still a student at [[Southern Methodist University]] (SMU) in [[Dallas]], Wolfe demonstrated entrepreneurial interests. She launched a clothing line called Tender Heart, which was covered by the university's campus newspaper, ''The SMU Daily Campus''.<ref name="smu">{{cite web |title=SMU Senior Whitney Wolfe Launches Second Business, Clothing Line Tender Heart |url=http://www.smudailycampus.com/news/smu-senior-whitney-wolfe-launches-second-business-clothing-line-tender-heart |publisher=SMU Daily Campus |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> The venture reflected Wolfe's early inclination toward building consumer-facing brands, a skill set she would later apply in the technology sector.
 
After completing her studies at SMU, Wolfe moved to [[Los Angeles]], where she entered the technology startup world. It was in this environment that she became involved with a group of entrepreneurs who were developing what would become Tinder, one of the most consequential mobile applications in the history of online dating.<ref name="bi-tinder">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2015-01 |title=Tinder Co-Founder Whitney Wolfe and Bumble |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/tinder-co-founder-whitney-wolfe-and-bumble-2015-1 |work=Business Insider |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


== Education ==
== Education ==


Wolfe Herd attended [[Southern Methodist University]] in [[Dallas]], [[Texas]], where she earned a [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree.<ref>{{cite web |title=SMU Senior Whitney Wolfe Launches Second Business, Clothing Line Tender Heart |url=http://www.smudailycampus.com/news/smu-senior-whitney-wolfe-launches-second-business-clothing-line-tender-heart |publisher=SMU Daily Campus |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> While at SMU, she was involved in entrepreneurial projects, including the Tender Heart clothing line, which combined a social-impact mission with a consumer product. Her time at SMU also provided her entry into the Los Angeles technology scene, where she would join the incubation of Tinder at [[Hatch Labs]], a startup incubator backed by [[IAC (company)|IAC]].<ref>{{cite news |date=2015-01-01 |title=Tinder Co-Founder Whitney Wolfe and Bumble |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/tinder-co-founder-whitney-wolfe-and-bumble-2015-1 |work=Business Insider |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
Wolfe Herd attended [[Southern Methodist University]] (SMU) in [[Dallas]], [[Texas]], where she earned a [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree.<ref name="smu" /> During her time at SMU, she was involved in entrepreneurial activities, including the launch of a clothing line. Her time at the university coincided with a period of growing interest in mobile technology and social networking platforms, and her post-graduation career trajectory led her directly into the technology startup ecosystem of [[Los Angeles]].<ref name="bi-tinder" />


== Career ==
== Career ==


=== Tinder ===
=== Tinder (2012–2014) ===
 
In 2012, Whitney Wolfe joined a team of entrepreneurs working on a mobile dating application that would become [[Tinder (app)|Tinder]].<ref name="biography" /> She served as the company's Vice President of Marketing and is credited as a co-founder of the app. In her marketing role, Wolfe was instrumental in driving early user adoption of Tinder, particularly among college-aged users. She reportedly traveled to university campuses to promote the app, a grassroots marketing strategy that helped Tinder gain rapid traction among young adults.<ref name="nyt-2017">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2017-03-18 |title=Bumble, the Feminist Dating App, and Whitney Wolfe |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/18/fashion/bumble-feminist-dating-app-whitney-wolfe.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
 
Tinder's introduction of the "swipe right" mechanic to indicate interest in a potential match fundamentally changed the landscape of online dating, transforming it from a desktop-centric activity into a mobile-first social experience.<ref name="nyt-interview-2025">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2025-05-10 |title='The Interview': Can Whitney Wolfe Herd Make Us Love Dating Apps Again? |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/10/magazine/whitney-wolfe-herd-interview.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> The app grew to become one of the most downloaded applications worldwide, and Wolfe's marketing contributions were a significant factor in its early success.<ref name="biography" />


Wolfe Herd was one of the earliest members of the team that developed [[Tinder (app)|Tinder]], the location-based dating application that popularized the "swipe" mechanic for online dating. She held the title of vice president of marketing at the company.<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2014-07 |title=Tinder: Whitney Wolfe, Sean Rad, Justin Mateen Sexual Harassment Suit |url=http://heavy.com/tech/2014/07/tinder-whitney-wolfe-sean-rad-justin-mateen-sexual-harassment-suit/ |work=Heavy.com |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> In that role, she is credited with helping to popularize the app among college students, a demographic that proved essential to Tinder's exponential early growth. According to a 2015 report in ''The Guardian'', Wolfe traveled to college campuses promoting the app and building its user base among young people.<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2015-04-12 |title=Bumble: the dating app where women call the shots |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/apr/12/bumble-dating-app-women-call-shots-whitney-wolfe |work=The Guardian |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
However, Wolfe's tenure at Tinder ended acrimoniously. In June 2014, she filed a lawsuit against Tinder and its parent company, alleging sexual harassment and discrimination by co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer Justin Mateen, as well as other senior executives at the company.<ref name="heavy">{{cite web |title=Tinder Whitney Wolfe Sean Rad Justin Mateen Sexual Harassment Suit |url=http://heavy.com/tech/2014/07/tinder-whitney-wolfe-sean-rad-justin-mateen-sexual-harassment-suit/ |publisher=Heavy |date=2014-07 |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> The lawsuit alleged that Mateen had sent Wolfe threatening and derogatory text messages and that she had been stripped of her co-founder title because the company's leadership felt that having a young female co-founder "ichael make the company look like a joke."<ref name="heavy" />


Wolfe Herd's co-founder title at Tinder later became a matter of dispute. Her role in the founding team and the nature of her contributions were debated publicly in the context of subsequent legal proceedings.<ref>{{cite news |date=2022-09-19 |title=The True Story Behind Swiped, Whitney Wolfe Herd, and the Birth of Bumble |url=https://time.com/7314564/swiped-true-story-whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble/ |work=Time |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> A 2012 co-founding of the dating app revolution was later documented by ''Biography.com'', which noted that Wolfe Herd "helped launched the dating app revolution with Tinder" before going on to build a competitor.<ref>{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe Helped Make Tinder a Success. Then She Created Its Fiercest Competitor. |url=https://www.biography.com/business-leaders/a66106070/swiped-true-story-whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble |publisher=Biography.com |date=2025-09-22 |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
The case attracted significant media attention and became one of the earliest high-profile sexual harassment claims in [[Silicon Valley]]'s technology industry, predating the broader [[Me Too movement]] by several years.<ref name="wapo-2015">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2015-12-02 |title=Whitney Wolfe, founder of dating app Bumble, has had quite the year. She just can't discuss parts of it. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/12/02/whitney-wolfe-founder-of-dating-app-bumble-has-had-quite-the-year-she-just-cant-discuss-parts-of-it/ |work=The Washington Post |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> In November 2014, the lawsuit was settled for a reported sum of just over one million dollars. As part of the settlement, Wolfe was prohibited from publicly discussing many details of the case.<ref name="bi-settle">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2014-11 |title=Whitney Wolfe Settles Sexual Harassment Tinder Lawsuit for $1 Million |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/whitney-wolfe-settles-sexual-harassment-tinder-lawsuit-1-million-2014-11 |work=Business Insider |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref><ref name="wapo-2015" /> Mateen was suspended from Tinder following the public disclosure of the lawsuit.<ref name="heavy" />


=== Departure from Tinder and Lawsuit ===
=== Founding of Bumble (2014) ===


In 2014, Wolfe Herd departed Tinder under acrimonious circumstances. She filed a lawsuit against Tinder and its parent company alleging sexual harassment and discrimination, naming co-founder and chief marketing officer Justin Mateen among the defendants. The lawsuit alleged that Mateen had sent her harassing text messages and that her co-founder title had been stripped because her role as a young female co-founder made the company "look like a joke," according to reporting by Heavy.com and other outlets.<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2014-07 |title=Tinder: Whitney Wolfe, Sean Rad, Justin Mateen Sexual Harassment Suit |url=http://heavy.com/tech/2014/07/tinder-whitney-wolfe-sean-rad-justin-mateen-sexual-harassment-suit/ |work=Heavy.com |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> The case drew significant media attention and brought questions of workplace gender dynamics in the technology industry into public discourse.
Following her departure from Tinder, Wolfe Herd initially considered stepping away from the dating app industry entirely. However, she was approached by [[Andrey Andreev]], the Russian-British entrepreneur and founder of the social networking platform [[Badoo]], who proposed a partnership to build a new dating application.<ref name="forbes-billion">{{cite news |last=O'Connor |first=Clare |date=2017-11-14 |title=Billion-Dollar Bumble: How Whitney Wolfe Herd Built America's Fastest-Growing Dating App |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/clareoconnor/2017/11/14/billion-dollar-bumble-how-whitney-wolfe-herd-built-americas-fastest-growing-dating-app/#1cb7bf24248b |work=Forbes |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


The lawsuit was settled in September 2014 for a reported sum of just over $1 million, with neither party admitting wrongdoing.<ref>{{cite news |date=2014-11 |title=Whitney Wolfe Settles Sexual Harassment Tinder Lawsuit for $1 Million |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/whitney-wolfe-settles-sexual-harassment-tinder-lawsuit-1-million-2014-11 |work=Business Insider |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> As ''The Washington Post'' reported in 2015, the terms of the settlement limited Wolfe Herd's ability to discuss certain aspects of her time at Tinder publicly.<ref>{{cite news |date=2015-12-02 |title=Whitney Wolfe, founder of dating app Bumble, has had quite the year. She just can't discuss parts of it. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/12/02/whitney-wolfe-founder-of-dating-app-bumble-has-had-quite-the-year-she-just-cant-discuss-parts-of-it/ |work=The Washington Post |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> Despite the constraints imposed by the settlement, the experience at Tinder informed much of Wolfe Herd's subsequent philosophy around Bumble and the idea of creating safer, more equitable digital spaces for women.
Wolfe Herd founded Bumble in 2014, headquartering the company in [[Austin]], [[Texas]].<ref name="atxwoman">{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe |url=https://atxwoman.com/whitney-wolfe/ |publisher=ATX Woman |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> The app's defining feature was its requirement that women make the first move in heterosexual matches — a design choice intended to address what Wolfe Herd described as the pervasive problem of unwanted messages and harassment that women experienced on other dating platforms.<ref name="guardian" /> In conversations with same-sex matches, either party could initiate contact.


=== Founding of Bumble ===
Wolfe Herd has stated that her original vision for Bumble extended beyond dating. Speaking at [[South by Southwest]] (SXSW) in 2018, she said, "What I originally wanted to do with Bumble is rewrite the Internet," attributing the company's success to its fundamental belief that women should be able to make the "first move" in romantic connections.<ref name="sxsw">{{cite web |title="What I originally wanted to do with Bumble is rewrite the Internet." - Whitney Wolfe Herd |url=https://sxsw.com/interactive/2018/sxsw-2018-featured-speaker-whitney-wolfe-herd-in-conversation-with-gayle-king-video/ |publisher=SXSW |date=2018 |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


Following her departure from Tinder, Wolfe Herd initially considered stepping away from the dating app industry entirely. However, she was approached by Andrey Andreev (now known as Andrey Andreev), the Russian-British entrepreneur behind the social networking platform Badoo, who proposed a collaboration. With Andreev's backing and technology infrastructure, Wolfe Herd launched Bumble in December 2014.<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2015-04-12 |title=Bumble: the dating app where women call the shots |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/apr/12/bumble-dating-app-women-call-shots-whitney-wolfe |work=The Guardian |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
The app distinguished itself in a crowded dating app market through this women-first approach, as well as through features such as time-limited matches (conversations expired if not initiated within 24 hours) and photo verification. Bumble grew rapidly, attracting millions of users and establishing itself as the primary competitor to Tinder in the United States.<ref name="forbes-billion" /><ref name="vf-bumble">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2015-08 |title=Bumble App: Whitney Wolfe |url=http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2015/08/bumble-app-whitney-wolfe |work=Vanity Fair |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


The central innovation of Bumble was a structural one: in heterosexual matches, only the woman could send the first message, a design choice that Wolfe Herd described as intended to reduce the volume of unwanted or harassing messages that women commonly received on other dating platforms. As Wolfe Herd stated at [[SXSW]] in 2018, "What I originally wanted to do with Bumble is rewrite the Internet," attributing the company's success to its fundamental belief that women should be able to make the "first move" in romantic connections.<ref>{{cite web |title=SXSW 2018 Featured Speaker: Whitney Wolfe Herd in Conversation with Gayle King |url=https://sxsw.com/interactive/2018/sxsw-2018-featured-speaker-whitney-wolfe-herd-in-conversation-with-gayle-king-video/ |publisher=SXSW |date=2018 |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
=== Expanding Bumble Beyond Dating ===


The app attracted users rapidly. ''Forbes'' reported in 2017 that Bumble had become "America's fastest-growing dating app," with the platform expanding its reach well beyond the dating vertical.<ref>{{cite news |last=O'Connor |first=Clare |date=2017-11-14 |title=Billion-Dollar Bumble: How Whitney Wolfe Herd Built America's Fastest-Growing Dating App |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/clareoconnor/2017/11/14/billion-dollar-bumble-how-whitney-wolfe-herd-built-americas-fastest-growing-dating-app/#1cb7bf24248b |work=Forbes |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> Bumble subsequently launched Bumble BFF, a feature for platonic friendships, and Bumble Bizz, a professional networking tool, positioning the platform as more than a dating service. ''Vanity Fair'' profiled Wolfe Herd and the app in August 2015, exploring how the women-first messaging model represented a shift in the dynamics of online dating.<ref>{{cite news |date=2015-08 |title=Bumble App: Whitney Wolfe |url=http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2015/08/bumble-app-whitney-wolfe |work=Vanity Fair |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
Under Wolfe Herd's leadership, Bumble expanded beyond romantic connections. The platform introduced Bumble BFF, a feature for finding platonic friendships, and Bumble Bizz, a networking tool designed to facilitate professional connections. These additions reflected Wolfe Herd's broader ambition to create a platform that addressed multiple dimensions of human connection, not solely dating.<ref name="npr">{{cite web |title=NPR Transcript: Whitney Wolfe Herd |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=557437086 |publisher=NPR |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


=== Bumble IPO and Growth ===
Wolfe Herd also advocated for legislative changes aimed at curbing online harassment. She worked with legislators in Texas to support a bill that would outlaw unsolicited sexually explicit images, a common form of harassment on dating platforms. The effort reflected her stated commitment to using technology and policy to create safer digital spaces.<ref name="texasmonthly">{{cite news |last= |first= |date= |title=Texas May Outlaw Unsolicited Sexual Images. Would That Be Enforceable, and Does It Even Matter? |url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/news/texas-may-outlaw-unsolicited-sexual-images-would-that-be-enforceable-and-does-it-even-matter/ |work=Texas Monthly |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


On February 11, 2021, Bumble Inc. went public on the [[Nasdaq]] stock exchange. The IPO was a landmark event: Wolfe Herd, at age 31, became one of the youngest women to take a company public in the United States. Shares opened significantly above their initial pricing, and the market debut valued Bumble at several billion dollars.<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2021-02-11 |title=Bumble IPO: CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd |url=https://fortune.com/2021/02/11/bumble-ipo-ceo-whitney-wolfe-herd-bmbl-stock-shares-interview-app-initial-public-offering/ |work=Fortune |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> ''Management Today'' reported that the IPO made Wolfe Herd the world's youngest female self-made billionaire at the time.<ref>{{cite web |title=How Whitney Wolfe Herd became the world's youngest female self-made billionaire |url=https://www.managementtoday.co.uk/whitney-wolfe-herd-became-worlds-youngest-female-self-made-billionaire/women-in-business/article/1707471 |publisher=Management Today |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
By 2017, ''Forbes'' described Bumble as "America's fastest-growing dating app," noting its billion-dollar valuation and its emergence as a major force in the technology and social media industries.<ref name="forbes-billion" />


Wolfe Herd owns approximately 23 million shares of Bumble Inc. Her stake in the company has represented a significant portion of her personal wealth, though the value has fluctuated with the company's share price in the years following the IPO.
=== Bumble IPO and Public Company Leadership ===


=== Stepping Down and Return as CEO ===
On February 11, 2021, Bumble, Inc. went public on the [[Nasdaq]] stock exchange under the ticker symbol BMBL. The initial public offering (IPO) was a landmark event that made Wolfe Herd, at age 31, one of the youngest women to take a company public in the United States.<ref name="fortune-ipo" /> The IPO was also notable because Wolfe Herd was the youngest woman to serve as CEO of a publicly traded company at the time.<ref name="mgmt-today">{{cite web |title=How Whitney Wolfe Herd became the world's youngest female self-made billionaire |url=https://www.managementtoday.co.uk/whitney-wolfe-herd-became-worlds-youngest-female-self-made-billionaire/women-in-business/article/1707471 |publisher=Management Today |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


After leading Bumble through its IPO and early period as a public company, Wolfe Herd transitioned from the CEO role to the position of executive chair. However, by 2025, she returned to the chief executive position. ''The New York Times'' reported in May 2025 that "The Bumble CEO has returned to run the struggling company she founded, and says she has a plan for getting Gen Z back."<ref>{{cite news |date=2025-05-10 |title='The Interview': Can Whitney Wolfe Herd Make Us Love Dating Apps Again? |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/10/magazine/whitney-wolfe-herd-interview.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> In the same interview, Wolfe Herd reflected on how the technology landscape had shifted since she co-founded Tinder, noting that the original era was marked by widespread optimism about apps and screens that had since given way to more ambivalent public attitudes.
On its first day of trading, Bumble's share price surged significantly, and the company's market capitalization reached approximately $13 billion. The strong debut made Wolfe Herd a billionaire, with ''Management Today'' reporting that she became the world's youngest female self-made billionaire.<ref name="mgmt-today" /> She owns approximately 23 million shares of Bumble, Inc.


Her return to the CEO role coincided with a broader strategic rethinking of the Bumble product. In an August 2025 interview with ''The Wall Street Journal'', Wolfe Herd outlined new ideas for the platform, including the integration of artificial intelligence into the matchmaking process. She made the personal disclosure that she "would never have swiped right on her husband," an anecdote she used to illustrate the limitations of the swipe-based model and the potential for AI-driven alternatives.<ref>{{cite news |date=2025-08-29 |title=Exclusive: Whitney Wolfe Herd Has a New Idea for Bumble—and All Our Relationships |url=https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble-ai-398779bb |work=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
=== Departure and Return as CEO ===


In a ''Time'' interview, Wolfe Herd discussed her broader vision for technology as a means to address social isolation, stating that she wants "technology to cure loneliness."<ref>{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe Herd Wants Technology to Cure Loneliness |url=https://time.com/collections/person-of-the-week-podcast/6289603/whitney-wolfe-herd-interview-person-of-the-week/ |publisher=Time |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
After leading Bumble through its IPO and early years as a public company, Wolfe Herd stepped back from the day-to-day CEO role. However, by 2025, she returned to active leadership of the company amid challenges facing the dating app industry more broadly. In a May 2025 interview with ''The New York Times'', she discussed her plans for reinvigorating Bumble and addressing a decline in dating app usage among [[Generation Z]].<ref name="nyt-interview-2025" />


=== Legislative Advocacy ===
In an August 2025 interview with ''The Wall Street Journal'', Wolfe Herd discussed new directions for Bumble, including the integration of [[artificial intelligence]] into the platform's matchmaking capabilities. She made the notable confession that she "would never have swiped right on her husband," suggesting that traditional swipe-based mechanics may be insufficient for creating meaningful connections and that AI could play a role in improving outcomes for users.<ref name="wsj-2025">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2025-08-29 |title=Exclusive: Whitney Wolfe Herd Has a New Idea for Bumble—and All Our Relationships |url=https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble-ai-398779bb |work=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


Beyond her work at Bumble, Wolfe Herd has been involved in legislative efforts related to online harassment. She was part of advocacy efforts in Texas to criminalize the sending of unsolicited sexually explicit images, commonly referred to as "cyberflashing." ''Texas Monthly'' covered these efforts, exploring whether outlawing unsolicited sexual images would be enforceable and examining the broader implications of such legislation.<ref>{{cite web |title=Texas May Outlaw Unsolicited Sexual Images. Would That Be Enforceable, and Does It Even Matter? |url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/news/texas-may-outlaw-unsolicited-sexual-images-would-that-be-enforceable-and-does-it-even-matter/ |publisher=Texas Monthly |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> Texas did pass such a law, making it one of the first states to specifically address the issue, and Wolfe Herd's advocacy was cited as a contributing factor in bringing the legislation to fruition.
Wolfe Herd has stated that she views the challenge of modern loneliness as a central problem that technology can help address. In a ''Time'' interview, she discussed her belief that technology, when designed thoughtfully, can serve as a cure for loneliness rather than a contributor to it.<ref name="time-loneliness">{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe Herd Wants Technology to Cure Loneliness |url=https://time.com/collections/person-of-the-week-podcast/6289603/whitney-wolfe-herd-interview-person-of-the-week/ |publisher=Time |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


== Personal Life ==
== Personal Life ==


Whitney Wolfe Herd is based in [[Austin, Texas]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe |url=https://atxwoman.com/whitney-wolfe/ |publisher=ATX Woman |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> She has two children.<ref>{{cite news |date=2025-05-10 |title='The Interview': Can Whitney Wolfe Herd Make Us Love Dating Apps Again? |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/10/magazine/whitney-wolfe-herd-interview.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
Whitney Wolfe Herd is based in [[Austin]], [[Texas]], where Bumble is headquartered.<ref name="atxwoman" /> She has two children. Wolfe Herd has been open about the challenges of balancing leadership of a major technology company with parenthood, a topic she has discussed in various media interviews.


In ''The Wall Street Journal'' interview in August 2025, Wolfe Herd referenced her husband in discussing the limitations of swipe-based dating, noting that traditional matching algorithms may not have connected them.<ref>{{cite news |date=2025-08-29 |title=Exclusive: Whitney Wolfe Herd Has a New Idea for Bumble—and All Our Relationships |url=https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble-ai-398779bb |work=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
Details about Wolfe Herd's personal relationships have been addressed in media coverage primarily in the context of her professional narrative. In her 2025 interview with ''The Wall Street Journal'', she referenced her husband, noting that the couple's connection illustrated the limitations of algorithm-based matching and swiping mechanics.<ref name="wsj-2025" />


Wolfe Herd has spoken publicly about the personal toll of her experience at Tinder, including the lawsuit and the intense media scrutiny that followed. ''The Washington Post'' noted in 2015 that despite having had "quite the year," she was unable to discuss significant portions of it due to the terms of her legal settlement.<ref>{{cite news |date=2015-12-02 |title=Whitney Wolfe, founder of dating app Bumble, has had quite the year. She just can't discuss parts of it. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/12/02/whitney-wolfe-founder-of-dating-app-bumble-has-had-quite-the-year-she-just-cant-discuss-parts-of-it/ |work=The Washington Post |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
Much of Wolfe Herd's public profile has been shaped by her experience at Tinder and the subsequent lawsuit. Due to the terms of her 2014 settlement with Tinder, she has been restricted from publicly discussing many details of that period, a limitation she acknowledged in a 2015 interview with ''The Washington Post''.<ref name="wapo-2015" />


== Recognition ==
== Recognition ==


In 2018, ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' named Wolfe Herd to its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.<ref>{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe Herd: The 100 Most Influential People of 2018 |url=https://time.com/collection/most-influential-people-2018/5217594/whitney-wolfe-herd/ |publisher=Time |date=2018 |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> The honor placed her alongside world leaders, artists, and scientists as one of the year's most consequential figures, and it recognized both her business accomplishments with Bumble and her broader cultural impact in reshaping how people interact online.
Wolfe Herd has received numerous honors and accolades throughout her career. In 2014, ''Business Insider'' named her one of the "30 Most Important Women Under 30 in Tech."<ref name="bi-30">{{cite web |title=30 Most Important Women Under 30 in Tech |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/30-most-important-women-under-30-in-tech-2014-2014-8 |publisher=Business Insider |date=2014-08 |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


''Business Insider'' included Wolfe Herd in its 2014 list of the "30 Most Important Women Under 30 in Tech," recognizing her contributions at Tinder and her emerging role as a technology entrepreneur in her own right.<ref>{{cite web |title=30 Most Important Women Under 30 in Tech |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/30-most-important-women-under-30-in-tech-2014-2014-8 |publisher=Business Insider |date=2014-08 |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
In 2018, ''Time'' magazine included Wolfe Herd on its annual list of the 100 Most Influential People in the world, recognizing her impact on the technology and dating industries.<ref name="time100" /> Her inclusion on the list acknowledged both the commercial success of Bumble and its cultural significance as a platform that shifted norms around gender dynamics in online dating.


''Forbes'' profiled Wolfe Herd in a 2017 feature titled "Billion-Dollar Bumble," documenting how she built what the magazine described as "America's fastest-growing dating app."<ref>{{cite news |last=O'Connor |first=Clare |date=2017-11-14 |title=Billion-Dollar Bumble: How Whitney Wolfe Herd Built America's Fastest-Growing Dating App |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/clareoconnor/2017/11/14/billion-dollar-bumble-how-whitney-wolfe-herd-built-americas-fastest-growing-dating-app/#1cb7bf24248b |work=Forbes |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
Following the Bumble IPO in 2021, Wolfe Herd received widespread recognition as one of the youngest women to lead a company to a public offering and was described as the world's youngest female self-made billionaire by multiple publications.<ref name="mgmt-today" /><ref name="fortune-ipo" />


NPR's ''How I Built This'' podcast featured Wolfe Herd in an extended interview about her entrepreneurial journey, including the founding of both Tinder and Bumble.<ref>{{cite web |title=How I Built This: Bumble |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=557437086 |publisher=NPR |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
''Paper'' magazine, ''Grazia'', and numerous other publications have profiled Wolfe Herd extensively, with coverage focusing on her role in transforming the dating app industry and her advocacy for women's safety in digital spaces.<ref name="paper">{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe Bumble |url=http://www.papermag.com/whitney-wolfe-bumble-it-girls-1647547057.html |publisher=Paper |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref><ref name="grazia">{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe: Tinder to Bumble |url=https://graziadaily.co.uk/life/real-life/whitney-wolfe-tinder-bumble/ |publisher=Grazia |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


''Paper Magazine'' profiled Wolfe Herd as part of its coverage of figures shaping digital culture, and ''Grazia'' explored her transition from Tinder to Bumble and the philosophy underpinning her approach to technology and dating.<ref>{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe: Bumble |url=http://www.papermag.com/whitney-wolfe-bumble-it-girls-1647547057.html |publisher=Paper Magazine |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Whitney Wolfe: Tinder to Bumble |url=https://graziadaily.co.uk/life/real-life/whitney-wolfe-tinder-bumble/ |publisher=Grazia |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
In 2025, Wolfe Herd's story was adapted into the Hulu film ''Swiped'', which dramatized her experiences at Tinder and the founding of Bumble. ''Time'' magazine and other outlets covered the film, noting its portrayal of the events that led to the creation of one of the world's most prominent dating platforms.<ref name="time-swiped">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2025-09-19 |title=The True Story Behind Swiped, Whitney Wolfe Herd, and the Birth of Bumble |url=https://time.com/7314564/swiped-true-story-whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble/ |work=Time |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref> ''Fortune'' reported on the film's focus, noting that ''Swiped'' concentrated primarily on Wolfe Herd's time at Tinder rather than her subsequent work building Bumble.<ref name="fortune-swiped">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2025-09-29 |title='Swiped' movie misses Bumble's story |url=https://fortune.com/2025/09/29/swiped-bumble-movie-tinder-whitney-wolfe-herd/ |work=Fortune |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>


In September 2025, a Hulu film titled ''Swiped'' dramatized portions of Wolfe Herd's career, particularly her time at Tinder. ''Time'' magazine examined the true story behind the film, while ''Fortune'' noted that the movie focused primarily on Wolfe Herd's experiences at Tinder rather than her subsequent founding of Bumble.<ref>{{cite news |date=2025-09-29 |title='Swiped' movie misses Bumble's story |url=https://fortune.com/2025/09/29/swiped-bumble-movie-tinder-whitney-wolfe-herd/ |work=Fortune |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=2025-09-19 |title=The True Story Behind Swiped, Whitney Wolfe Herd, and the Birth of Bumble |url=https://time.com/7314564/swiped-true-story-whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble/ |work=Time |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
== Legacy ==


== Legacy ==
Whitney Wolfe Herd's career has been defined by two major contributions to the technology industry: her role in co-founding Tinder, which introduced swipe-based mobile dating to a mainstream audience, and her creation of Bumble, which introduced a women-first model to the dating app ecosystem.<ref name="biography" /><ref name="nyt-interview-2025" />


Whitney Wolfe Herd's impact on the technology and dating industries can be observed in several areas. The "women message first" design of Bumble introduced a structural mechanic that shifted the power dynamics of online dating interactions and influenced how subsequent platforms approached the problem of unwanted messages and harassment. Bumble's model demonstrated that placing constraints on user behavior could be commercially viable while also addressing gendered patterns of online interaction.<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2017-03-18 |title=Bumble, the Feminist Dating App |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/18/fashion/bumble-feminist-dating-app-whitney-wolfe.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
Bumble's design principle — requiring women to initiate contact — represented a deliberate challenge to the norms of online dating, where women often reported being overwhelmed by unsolicited messages. The app's approach influenced the broader dating industry, with competitors subsequently introducing features aimed at giving users, particularly women, more control over their experience.<ref name="guardian" /><ref name="nyt-2017" />


Her career trajectory — from co-founding Tinder, to filing a sexual harassment lawsuit against the company, to building a competitor that emphasized women's agency — became a prominent narrative in discussions about gender and Silicon Valley culture. ''The Washington Post'' in 2015 noted the unusual nature of her story in the tech industry: a woman who had publicly challenged a former employer over workplace harassment and then built an alternative platform grounded in different values.<ref>{{cite news |date=2015-10-23 |title=Meet Bumble Chief Executive Whitney Wolfe |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-live/wp/2015/10/23/meet-bumble-chief-executive-whitney-wolfe/ |work=The Washington Post |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
Wolfe Herd's sexual harassment lawsuit against Tinder in 2014 also had a lasting impact on the technology industry's reckoning with workplace culture. Filed years before the [[Me Too movement]] brought widespread attention to sexual harassment and discrimination, the case was among the first high-profile lawsuits to publicly challenge the behavior of executives at a major Silicon Valley startup.<ref name="wapo-2015" /><ref name="heavy" />


Wolfe Herd's legislative advocacy, particularly around laws targeting unsolicited sexually explicit images, represented an extension of her platform work into the public policy arena. The passage of Texas legislation addressing cyberflashing was among the first such laws in the United States and contributed to a broader national conversation about regulating online harassment.<ref>{{cite web |title=Texas May Outlaw Unsolicited Sexual Images. Would That Be Enforceable, and Does It Even Matter? |url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/news/texas-may-outlaw-unsolicited-sexual-images-would-that-be-enforceable-and-does-it-even-matter/ |publisher=Texas Monthly |date= |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
Her legislative advocacy for laws against unsolicited sexually explicit images — often referred to as cyberflashing — contributed to broader discussions about digital harassment and the responsibilities of technology platforms in protecting users.<ref name="texasmonthly" />


The Bumble IPO in 2021 also held symbolic significance: Wolfe Herd became one of the youngest women to take a company public in the United States, an event that received extensive media coverage and was noted as a milestone for women in the technology sector.<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=2021-02-11 |title=Bumble IPO: CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd |url=https://fortune.com/2021/02/11/bumble-ipo-ceo-whitney-wolfe-herd-bmbl-stock-shares-interview-app-initial-public-offering/ |work=Fortune |access-date=2026-02-23}}</ref>
As of 2025, Wolfe Herd continues to lead Bumble as the company navigates a rapidly changing landscape in which dating app fatigue, particularly among younger users, poses a significant challenge. Her stated focus on integrating artificial intelligence and addressing the broader societal issue of loneliness reflects an evolution in her thinking about the role of technology in human connection.<ref name="wsj-2025" /><ref name="time-loneliness" />


== References ==
== References ==
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Latest revision as of 01:48, 24 February 2026


Whitney Wolfe Herd
Wolfe Herd in 2018
Whitney Wolfe Herd
BornWhitney Wolfe
1 7, 1989
BirthplaceSalt Lake City, Utah, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
OccupationEntrepreneur, business executive
Known forFounder of Bumble, co-founder of Tinder
EducationSouthern Methodist University (BA)
Children2
AwardsTime 100 Most Influential People (2018)

Whitney Wolfe Herd (née Wolfe; born July 1, 1989) is an American entrepreneur and business executive who founded the dating application Bumble and serves as its executive chair and CEO. Before launching Bumble, she was a co-founder and Vice President of Marketing at Tinder, where she played a central role in building one of the first mainstream mobile dating platforms. Wolfe Herd's departure from Tinder in 2014 was accompanied by a high-profile sexual harassment lawsuit that drew widespread attention to workplace culture in the technology industry. She subsequently founded Bumble, a dating app distinguished by its requirement that women initiate conversations in heterosexual matches — a design choice rooted in Wolfe Herd's stated goal of shifting power dynamics in online dating.[1] In February 2021, Wolfe Herd took Bumble public on the Nasdaq, becoming one of the youngest women to take a company public in the United States.[2] She was named to the Time 100 list of most influential people in 2018 and has been recognized as one of the most prominent figures in the technology and dating industries.[3]

Early Life

Whitney Wolfe was born on July 1, 1989, in Salt Lake City, Utah.[4] She grew up in Utah before relocating to Texas for her higher education. Details about her family background and upbringing prior to college remain limited in publicly available sources.

While still a student at Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas, Wolfe demonstrated entrepreneurial interests. She launched a clothing line called Tender Heart, which was covered by the university's campus newspaper, The SMU Daily Campus.[5] The venture reflected Wolfe's early inclination toward building consumer-facing brands, a skill set she would later apply in the technology sector.

After completing her studies at SMU, Wolfe moved to Los Angeles, where she entered the technology startup world. It was in this environment that she became involved with a group of entrepreneurs who were developing what would become Tinder, one of the most consequential mobile applications in the history of online dating.[6]

Education

Wolfe Herd attended Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas, Texas, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree.[5] During her time at SMU, she was involved in entrepreneurial activities, including the launch of a clothing line. Her time at the university coincided with a period of growing interest in mobile technology and social networking platforms, and her post-graduation career trajectory led her directly into the technology startup ecosystem of Los Angeles.[6]

Career

Tinder (2012–2014)

In 2012, Whitney Wolfe joined a team of entrepreneurs working on a mobile dating application that would become Tinder.[4] She served as the company's Vice President of Marketing and is credited as a co-founder of the app. In her marketing role, Wolfe was instrumental in driving early user adoption of Tinder, particularly among college-aged users. She reportedly traveled to university campuses to promote the app, a grassroots marketing strategy that helped Tinder gain rapid traction among young adults.[7]

Tinder's introduction of the "swipe right" mechanic to indicate interest in a potential match fundamentally changed the landscape of online dating, transforming it from a desktop-centric activity into a mobile-first social experience.[8] The app grew to become one of the most downloaded applications worldwide, and Wolfe's marketing contributions were a significant factor in its early success.[4]

However, Wolfe's tenure at Tinder ended acrimoniously. In June 2014, she filed a lawsuit against Tinder and its parent company, alleging sexual harassment and discrimination by co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer Justin Mateen, as well as other senior executives at the company.[9] The lawsuit alleged that Mateen had sent Wolfe threatening and derogatory text messages and that she had been stripped of her co-founder title because the company's leadership felt that having a young female co-founder "ichael make the company look like a joke."[9]

The case attracted significant media attention and became one of the earliest high-profile sexual harassment claims in Silicon Valley's technology industry, predating the broader Me Too movement by several years.[10] In November 2014, the lawsuit was settled for a reported sum of just over one million dollars. As part of the settlement, Wolfe was prohibited from publicly discussing many details of the case.[11][10] Mateen was suspended from Tinder following the public disclosure of the lawsuit.[9]

Founding of Bumble (2014)

Following her departure from Tinder, Wolfe Herd initially considered stepping away from the dating app industry entirely. However, she was approached by Andrey Andreev, the Russian-British entrepreneur and founder of the social networking platform Badoo, who proposed a partnership to build a new dating application.[12]

Wolfe Herd founded Bumble in 2014, headquartering the company in Austin, Texas.[13] The app's defining feature was its requirement that women make the first move in heterosexual matches — a design choice intended to address what Wolfe Herd described as the pervasive problem of unwanted messages and harassment that women experienced on other dating platforms.[1] In conversations with same-sex matches, either party could initiate contact.

Wolfe Herd has stated that her original vision for Bumble extended beyond dating. Speaking at South by Southwest (SXSW) in 2018, she said, "What I originally wanted to do with Bumble is rewrite the Internet," attributing the company's success to its fundamental belief that women should be able to make the "first move" in romantic connections.[14]

The app distinguished itself in a crowded dating app market through this women-first approach, as well as through features such as time-limited matches (conversations expired if not initiated within 24 hours) and photo verification. Bumble grew rapidly, attracting millions of users and establishing itself as the primary competitor to Tinder in the United States.[12][15]

Expanding Bumble Beyond Dating

Under Wolfe Herd's leadership, Bumble expanded beyond romantic connections. The platform introduced Bumble BFF, a feature for finding platonic friendships, and Bumble Bizz, a networking tool designed to facilitate professional connections. These additions reflected Wolfe Herd's broader ambition to create a platform that addressed multiple dimensions of human connection, not solely dating.[16]

Wolfe Herd also advocated for legislative changes aimed at curbing online harassment. She worked with legislators in Texas to support a bill that would outlaw unsolicited sexually explicit images, a common form of harassment on dating platforms. The effort reflected her stated commitment to using technology and policy to create safer digital spaces.[17]

By 2017, Forbes described Bumble as "America's fastest-growing dating app," noting its billion-dollar valuation and its emergence as a major force in the technology and social media industries.[12]

Bumble IPO and Public Company Leadership

On February 11, 2021, Bumble, Inc. went public on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol BMBL. The initial public offering (IPO) was a landmark event that made Wolfe Herd, at age 31, one of the youngest women to take a company public in the United States.[2] The IPO was also notable because Wolfe Herd was the youngest woman to serve as CEO of a publicly traded company at the time.[18]

On its first day of trading, Bumble's share price surged significantly, and the company's market capitalization reached approximately $13 billion. The strong debut made Wolfe Herd a billionaire, with Management Today reporting that she became the world's youngest female self-made billionaire.[18] She owns approximately 23 million shares of Bumble, Inc.

Departure and Return as CEO

After leading Bumble through its IPO and early years as a public company, Wolfe Herd stepped back from the day-to-day CEO role. However, by 2025, she returned to active leadership of the company amid challenges facing the dating app industry more broadly. In a May 2025 interview with The New York Times, she discussed her plans for reinvigorating Bumble and addressing a decline in dating app usage among Generation Z.[8]

In an August 2025 interview with The Wall Street Journal, Wolfe Herd discussed new directions for Bumble, including the integration of artificial intelligence into the platform's matchmaking capabilities. She made the notable confession that she "would never have swiped right on her husband," suggesting that traditional swipe-based mechanics may be insufficient for creating meaningful connections and that AI could play a role in improving outcomes for users.[19]

Wolfe Herd has stated that she views the challenge of modern loneliness as a central problem that technology can help address. In a Time interview, she discussed her belief that technology, when designed thoughtfully, can serve as a cure for loneliness rather than a contributor to it.[20]

Personal Life

Whitney Wolfe Herd is based in Austin, Texas, where Bumble is headquartered.[13] She has two children. Wolfe Herd has been open about the challenges of balancing leadership of a major technology company with parenthood, a topic she has discussed in various media interviews.

Details about Wolfe Herd's personal relationships have been addressed in media coverage primarily in the context of her professional narrative. In her 2025 interview with The Wall Street Journal, she referenced her husband, noting that the couple's connection illustrated the limitations of algorithm-based matching and swiping mechanics.[19]

Much of Wolfe Herd's public profile has been shaped by her experience at Tinder and the subsequent lawsuit. Due to the terms of her 2014 settlement with Tinder, she has been restricted from publicly discussing many details of that period, a limitation she acknowledged in a 2015 interview with The Washington Post.[10]

Recognition

Wolfe Herd has received numerous honors and accolades throughout her career. In 2014, Business Insider named her one of the "30 Most Important Women Under 30 in Tech."[21]

In 2018, Time magazine included Wolfe Herd on its annual list of the 100 Most Influential People in the world, recognizing her impact on the technology and dating industries.[3] Her inclusion on the list acknowledged both the commercial success of Bumble and its cultural significance as a platform that shifted norms around gender dynamics in online dating.

Following the Bumble IPO in 2021, Wolfe Herd received widespread recognition as one of the youngest women to lead a company to a public offering and was described as the world's youngest female self-made billionaire by multiple publications.[18][2]

Paper magazine, Grazia, and numerous other publications have profiled Wolfe Herd extensively, with coverage focusing on her role in transforming the dating app industry and her advocacy for women's safety in digital spaces.[22][23]

In 2025, Wolfe Herd's story was adapted into the Hulu film Swiped, which dramatized her experiences at Tinder and the founding of Bumble. Time magazine and other outlets covered the film, noting its portrayal of the events that led to the creation of one of the world's most prominent dating platforms.[24] Fortune reported on the film's focus, noting that Swiped concentrated primarily on Wolfe Herd's time at Tinder rather than her subsequent work building Bumble.[25]

Legacy

Whitney Wolfe Herd's career has been defined by two major contributions to the technology industry: her role in co-founding Tinder, which introduced swipe-based mobile dating to a mainstream audience, and her creation of Bumble, which introduced a women-first model to the dating app ecosystem.[4][8]

Bumble's design principle — requiring women to initiate contact — represented a deliberate challenge to the norms of online dating, where women often reported being overwhelmed by unsolicited messages. The app's approach influenced the broader dating industry, with competitors subsequently introducing features aimed at giving users, particularly women, more control over their experience.[1][7]

Wolfe Herd's sexual harassment lawsuit against Tinder in 2014 also had a lasting impact on the technology industry's reckoning with workplace culture. Filed years before the Me Too movement brought widespread attention to sexual harassment and discrimination, the case was among the first high-profile lawsuits to publicly challenge the behavior of executives at a major Silicon Valley startup.[10][9]

Her legislative advocacy for laws against unsolicited sexually explicit images — often referred to as cyberflashing — contributed to broader discussions about digital harassment and the responsibilities of technology platforms in protecting users.[17]

As of 2025, Wolfe Herd continues to lead Bumble as the company navigates a rapidly changing landscape in which dating app fatigue, particularly among younger users, poses a significant challenge. Her stated focus on integrating artificial intelligence and addressing the broader societal issue of loneliness reflects an evolution in her thinking about the role of technology in human connection.[19][20]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 GarberMeganMegan"Bumble: the dating app where women call the shots".The Guardian.2015-04-12.https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/apr/12/bumble-dating-app-women-call-shots-whitney-wolfe.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Bumble IPO: CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd on BMBL stock, shares, and the app's initial public offering".Fortune.2021-02-11.https://fortune.com/2021/02/11/bumble-ipo-ceo-whitney-wolfe-herd-bmbl-stock-shares-interview-app-initial-public-offering/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Whitney Wolfe Herd: The 100 Most Influential People of 2018".Time.2018.https://time.com/collection/most-influential-people-2018/5217594/whitney-wolfe-herd/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Whitney Wolfe Helped Make Tinder a Success. Then She Created Its Fiercest Competitor.".Biography.2025-09-22.https://www.biography.com/business-leaders/a66106070/swiped-true-story-whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "SMU Senior Whitney Wolfe Launches Second Business, Clothing Line Tender Heart".SMU Daily Campus.http://www.smudailycampus.com/news/smu-senior-whitney-wolfe-launches-second-business-clothing-line-tender-heart.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Tinder Co-Founder Whitney Wolfe and Bumble".Business Insider.2015-01.http://www.businessinsider.com/tinder-co-founder-whitney-wolfe-and-bumble-2015-1.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Bumble, the Feminist Dating App, and Whitney Wolfe".The New York Times.2017-03-18.https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/18/fashion/bumble-feminist-dating-app-whitney-wolfe.html.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 "'The Interview': Can Whitney Wolfe Herd Make Us Love Dating Apps Again?".The New York Times.2025-05-10.https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/10/magazine/whitney-wolfe-herd-interview.html.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 "Tinder Whitney Wolfe Sean Rad Justin Mateen Sexual Harassment Suit".Heavy.2014-07.http://heavy.com/tech/2014/07/tinder-whitney-wolfe-sean-rad-justin-mateen-sexual-harassment-suit/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 "Whitney Wolfe, founder of dating app Bumble, has had quite the year. She just can't discuss parts of it.".The Washington Post.2015-12-02.https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/12/02/whitney-wolfe-founder-of-dating-app-bumble-has-had-quite-the-year-she-just-cant-discuss-parts-of-it/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  11. ↑ "Whitney Wolfe Settles Sexual Harassment Tinder Lawsuit for $1 Million".Business Insider.2014-11.https://www.businessinsider.com/whitney-wolfe-settles-sexual-harassment-tinder-lawsuit-1-million-2014-11.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 O'ConnorClareClare"Billion-Dollar Bumble: How Whitney Wolfe Herd Built America's Fastest-Growing Dating App".Forbes.2017-11-14.https://www.forbes.com/sites/clareoconnor/2017/11/14/billion-dollar-bumble-how-whitney-wolfe-herd-built-americas-fastest-growing-dating-app/#1cb7bf24248b.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Whitney Wolfe".ATX Woman.https://atxwoman.com/whitney-wolfe/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  14. ↑ ""What I originally wanted to do with Bumble is rewrite the Internet." - Whitney Wolfe Herd".SXSW.2018.https://sxsw.com/interactive/2018/sxsw-2018-featured-speaker-whitney-wolfe-herd-in-conversation-with-gayle-king-video/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  15. ↑ "Bumble App: Whitney Wolfe".Vanity Fair.2015-08.http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2015/08/bumble-app-whitney-wolfe.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  16. ↑ "NPR Transcript: Whitney Wolfe Herd".NPR.https://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=557437086.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "Texas May Outlaw Unsolicited Sexual Images. Would That Be Enforceable, and Does It Even Matter?".Texas Monthly.https://www.texasmonthly.com/news/texas-may-outlaw-unsolicited-sexual-images-would-that-be-enforceable-and-does-it-even-matter/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 "How Whitney Wolfe Herd became the world's youngest female self-made billionaire".Management Today.https://www.managementtoday.co.uk/whitney-wolfe-herd-became-worlds-youngest-female-self-made-billionaire/women-in-business/article/1707471.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 "Exclusive: Whitney Wolfe Herd Has a New Idea for Bumble—and All Our Relationships".The Wall Street Journal.2025-08-29.https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble-ai-398779bb.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 "Whitney Wolfe Herd Wants Technology to Cure Loneliness".Time.https://time.com/collections/person-of-the-week-podcast/6289603/whitney-wolfe-herd-interview-person-of-the-week/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  21. ↑ "30 Most Important Women Under 30 in Tech".Business Insider.2014-08.https://www.businessinsider.com/30-most-important-women-under-30-in-tech-2014-2014-8.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  22. ↑ "Whitney Wolfe Bumble".Paper.http://www.papermag.com/whitney-wolfe-bumble-it-girls-1647547057.html.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  23. ↑ "Whitney Wolfe: Tinder to Bumble".Grazia.https://graziadaily.co.uk/life/real-life/whitney-wolfe-tinder-bumble/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  24. ↑ "The True Story Behind Swiped, Whitney Wolfe Herd, and the Birth of Bumble".Time.2025-09-19.https://time.com/7314564/swiped-true-story-whitney-wolfe-herd-bumble/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  25. ↑ "'Swiped' movie misses Bumble's story".Fortune.2025-09-29.https://fortune.com/2025/09/29/swiped-bumble-movie-tinder-whitney-wolfe-herd/.Retrieved 2026-02-23.

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