Grindr has a new boss daddy with big ambitions.George Arison will assume the role of CEO for the “dating” app, ahead of a plan to take the company public.That’ll be to the tune of a $2.1 billion valuation range, and that’s a lot of zeroes.Arison is gay and will be one of the few gay men leading a public company (we see you Tim Cook).NBC News reports Arison “led a taxi-hailing app before he started his own company nearly a decade ago, has been on Grindr’s board of directors since May.”Related: How to get unbanned from Grindr“Arison will take over on Oct.
19 as Grindr prepares to go public by merging with a special purpose acquisition company,” NBC News added. “In a statement Tuesday, Arison called Grindr, which had about 11 million monthly active users around the world last year, an ‘unbelievable business.'”Arison “will take the wheel as the app reckons in the immediate term with its role in addressing the outbreak of monkeypox,” NBC said.Grindr was launched in 2009 by tech entrepreneur Joel Simkhai.
One of the first geosocial networking sites on the market, it benefited from the explosion in smartphone use and quickly became one of the most popular dating apps for gay and bisexual men..