Investors Dump Dating Apps

Hi, today we explore: (1) Why investors are dumping dating apps, (2) Surging olive oil prices and (3) Air quality in New Delhi. TOGETHER WITH Today's Topics Hello! Debates around the Thanksgiving table this year might be a little more relaxed — a [new poll]( suggests our attention to national political news has fallen 10% since 2020. Today we're exploring: - Bumbled: Investors, and users, are dumping dating apps. - Pressing higher: Prices for olive oil continue to soar. - Odds and evens: New Delhi is exploring every fix for its air pollution problem. Have feedback for us? Just hit reply — we'd love to hear from you! [Read this on the web instead]( The spark is gone On Monday, Whitney Wolfe Herd, the founder of dating app Bumble, announced that she was [stepping down]( as CEO of the company she started in 2014, a day before the company gave an unremarkable update to investors, the combined effect of which is a share price that’s down ~7% this morning. Wolfe Herd is dating app royalty. She was co-founder and VP of marketing at Tinder, before an acrimonious exit from the company, which included allegations of sexual harassment, led her to start Bumble — an app where women kick off the conversations. Bumble’s success took Wolfe Herd to billionaire status, though a heart-wrenching 81% slide in its share price (not including the latest drop) has recently seen Forbes give her the “[former billionaire]( treatment. But, it’s not just Bumble. Match Group, Tinder’s parent company, has also been through a rocky period, reporting a 5% decline in paying swipers [last week]( a trend that’s expected to worsen as price hikes take effect. Not so hot If you asked most people about the typical dating app user, most answers might include some reference to “younger folks” — but an increasing amount of evidence suggests that even they might be losing interest. Indeed, an [Axios/Generation Lab survey]( out this week revealed that a whopping 79% of US college students reported they don't use any dating apps even once a month, with only 12% admitting to using Tinder every month. To combat slipping user numbers, Tinder is focusing on those "highly motivated daters" by introducing a $499-a-month [VIP subscription](. Olio portfolio While experts have long extolled the Mediterranean diet and its many benefits, one key ingredient of the continental cuisine is getting so expensive that even the most delectable dishes may begin to look unappetizing. Indeed, olive oil prices have been soaring for months and keep hitting new multi-decade highs, as the regions producing the most "liquid gold" continue to battle arid conditions that have seen supplies shrink and sent the cost of the healthy fat up to $9,364 per metric ton, according to the [International Monetary Fund](. The rocketing prices, which are now up more than 7x since a slump in December 2020, have been an ongoing issue around the world since a drought last summer, and it could be a little while yet until the oil industry begins to look slick again. The European Commission [recently confirmed]( that production this year in countries like Spain, which is responsible for making almost 50% of the world’s olive oil in [typical years]( will only recover slightly from last season’s ~40% decline. [Sponsored by hear.com]( Restaurants. Block parties. Weddings. They get loud — and as background noise levels up, the ease of conversation drops off. It’s a problem for many: 48 million Americans hear so poorly that their quality of life suffers as a result. But thanks to a duo of ambitious entrepreneurs (and next-gen German technology), there’s no need to suffer in silence. Better hearing is on the horizon Following years of research, [hear.com]( have developed Horizon: a tiny pair of hearing devices that pack a punch. As one of the world’s [first dual-processing hearing aids]( Horizon separates speech from background noise then recombines them for a crystal clear sound. Plus, [Horizon]( is virtually invisible — and keeps you plugged in with smartphone and bluetooth connectivity. hear.com offers a 45-day no-risk trial, and works with all major insurance plans to maximize savings. Try [Horizon]( and never miss a beat. [Find out where to secure your no-risk Horizon trial]( New Delhi’s old problem Early winter has rolled around again, bringing a now-common fact of life for New Delhi's 33 million residents: a lot of bad air. Indeed, India’s capital has been breaching the 450 mark on the Air Quality Index — over 4x the “healthy” level — as routine crop burning mixed with colder temperatures continues to [blight the](. The perfect storm of nearby farmers torching plants in early November and cold weather trapping particles from the blaze has plagued New Delhi for decades, but this year has seen some of the worst air quality postings since 2020. On Saturday, for example, State Department data showed that air quality around the US embassy in the capital hit 542, deep into the [“hazardous” zone](. Odds and evens Breathing in the New Delhi air is akin to smoking 25-30 cigarettes a day, according to some [lung doctors]( and the city, often ranked as one of the most polluted in the world, has been forced to take precautions. Schools are closed until the 10th and Cricket World Cup fixtures, some of which are being played in the capital, have been [shrouded in smog](. Interestingly, the government is also implementing an “[odd-even]( system for road users — vehicles with registrations ending in odd numbers can only drive on odd-numbered dates and vice versa — from Monday 13th, in a further effort to curb the ongoing issue. More Data • The share of Chinese adults who view the US as an “enemy” or “unfriendly” has slid 9% in the last 6 months to just under half, per a recent Morning Consult [report](. • Fast fashion powerhouse Shein is reportedly seeking a $90 billion valuation for its [US IPO]( roughly 18x what The Gap is worth (~$5bn). • 48 million Americans hear so poorly that their quality of life suffers — a stat that [hear.com]( is daring to change with Horizon. It’s a virtually invisible hearing aid that unlocks unparalleled speech clarity, no matter how loud life gets. Discover the [next-gen device here]( • The sequel to the record-shattering Grand Theft Auto V — which sold 185 million copies — is close, as Rockstar Games announces [new details on GTA 6](. **This is sponsored content. Hi-Viz • Here’s a visual deep dive into the rise of the [American McMansion](. • Embark on a journey through time and space via this virtual [James Webb]( Telescope](. Off the charts: Which company is this, that's finally stacking profits? [Answer below]. [Answer here](. Thanks for reading. See you on Friday! Have some [feedback](mailto:daily@chartr.co?subject=Feedback&body=Hi%2C%0A%0AI%20like%20the%20newsletters%2C%20but%20I%20had%20a%20thought%20for%20you...) or want to [sponsor]( this newsletter? Not a subscriber? Sign up for free below. [Subscribe]( Copyright © 2023 CHARTR LIMITED, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website. 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