Good morning, tech enthusiasts. Tinder’s new Double Date feature lets you and your bestie swipe as a team and match with other pairs — think less solo stress, more group chemistry.

As rivals like Bumble and Hinge push community-focused dating, Tinder is aiming to boost engagement and shift its ‘hookup app’ image — but will double dating become the new norm for finding love online?

In today’s tech rundown:

• Tinder rolls out double dating feature

• Spotify’s Daniel Ek bets big on defense AI

• New obesity pill burns fat and keeps muscle

• Gig economy startup WorkWhile grabs $23M

• Quick hits on other major tech news

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS

TINDER

🥂 Tinder rolls out double dating feature

Image source: Tinder

The Rundown: Dating app Tinder is making a play to recapture Gen Z users with the launch of its Double Date feature, a group-centric twist on digital matchmaking that aims to make dating more social and less anxiety-producing.

The details:

• Double Date allows users to invite a friend (or up to three friends) to form a pair/team — and swipe together on other pairs.

• It’s a data-driven response to shifting user habits and the growing demand for low-pressure social experiences, especially among Gen Z.

• Early testing revealed that nearly 90% of Double Date profiles were created by users under 29, with women 3x more likely to like a pair versus solo profiles.

• Hinge and Bumble are also leveraging group activities, interest-based communities, and in-person events to meet user demand.

Why it matters: New CEO Spencer Rascoff aims to revamp the app’s image, with a focus on “fewer likes, better types.” Tinder is the first major dating app to offer group dating, but follows smaller players Fourplay, DuoDate, and Doubble. Tinder says that nearly 15% of Double Date users were either brand-new or reactivated accounts.

HELSING

🪖 Spotify’s Daniel Ek bets big on defense AI

Image source: Helsing

The Rundown: Spotify founder Daniel Ek just made an audacious bet on the future of European defense tech, leading a €600M ($692M) funding round in Helsing, the Munich-based defense AI startup he first backed with €100M ($115M) in 2021.

The details:

• Ek’s investment venture Prima Materia led the round, pushing Helsing’s valuation to €12B ($13.8B), making it a top European private tech firm.

• Helsing evolved from AI software to developing strike drones, autonomous mini-submarines, and its flagship battlefield management platforms.

• Its core tech fuses data from military sensors, radars, and weapons systems —and uses AI to generate real-time battlefield visualizations.

• The company’s new HX-2 drones are capable of operating in coordinated swarms and executing missions even under communications blackouts.

Why it matters: Massive investments in defense tech firms like Anduril, Shield AI, and Helsing are fueling the global shift to autonomous, software-defined warfare. Ek’s bet on Helsing also signals that Europe’s tech elite are joining the fray. The startup has already signed major deals with NATO countries and says it is committed to ethical AI.

BIOTECH INNOVATIONS

💊 New obesity pill burns fat and keeps muscle

Image source: Ideogram/The Rundown

The Rundown: An experimental obesity pill developed by biotech firm Eolo Pharma is showing promise, according to new results of a preliminary human trial. But rather than reducing appetite like Ozempic, it burns fat with no muscle-wasting side effects.

The details:

• SANA is the first drug to pharmacologically activate creatine-dependent thermogenesis in humans, a unique energy-burning pathway.

• Unlike GLP-1 drugs, SANA preserved and even increased lean muscle mass in preclinical models while reducing fat, as confirmed by EchoMRI analysis.

• The Phase 1a/b trial was double-blind, randomized, and placebo-controlled, involving participants with obesity who received oral SANA for 15 days.

• Eolo Pharma plans to initiate Phase 2 clinical trials this year to evaluate SANA’s safety and efficacy as both a standalone and combination therapy for obesity.

Why it matters: While still early days, its first round of human trials showed significant weight loss in just two weeks, and preclinical data suggest it could help users shed fat while preserving precious muscle mass — a critical advantage over current injectables like Ozempic and Wegovy that can erode lean tissue.

WORKWHILE

⚡️ Gig economy startup WorkWhile grabs $23M

Image source: WorkWhile

The Rundown: San Francisco’s WorkWhile raised $23M in Series B funding to expand its AI-powered gig labor platform, aiming to help businesses quickly find hourly workers while offering flexible schedules and faster pay for workers.

The details:

• WorkWhile says its platform leverages advanced machine learning algorithms to match businesses with reliable hourly workers.

• The platform analyzes 150 factors — such as no-show rates and transportation access — to predict worker quality and reliability “with 95% accuracy.”

• The startup serves over 1M users in the U.S., connecting workers with shifts in industries like warehousing, food production, and last-mile delivery.

• WorkWhile has powered staffing for high-profile events and clients, including Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, the Super Bowl, NASCAR, and the NCAA Final Four.

Why it matters: Companies like Instawork, Workstream, Shiftgig, and WorkWhile aim to disrupt the $650B global staffing market — including $230B in U.S. temp jobs — with an AI-driven option to old-school agencies. Yet, gig economy debates continue, and WorkWhile paid $1M last year in an ongoing worker classification dispute.

QUICK HITS

📰 Everything else in tech today

Chinese AI startup MiniMax announced that its new large language model, MiniMax-M1, outperforms DeepSeek, Bloomberg reports.

OpenAI won a $200M contract from the U.S. Defense Department to deploy frontier AI tools for warfighting and enterprise use cases.

WhatsApp is introducing ads in its Updates tab and new paid Channel features globally — all while keeping chats private and ad-free.

Eli Lilly & Co. is reportedly in advanced negotiations to acquire gene-editing specialist Verve Therapeutics for as much as $1.3B.

Amazon announced that it is extending its Prime Day discount event to four days, from midnight PT on July 8 through July 11.

The Trump Organization’s newly announced $499 T1 smartphone may be produced by a Chinese device manufacturer, according to reports.  

Meta is set to expand its smart glasses lineup beyond its successful Ray-Ban partnership, teaming up with Oakley for a new product launch on Friday, June 20.

Britain announced a major £250M ($340M) investment to accelerate the development of green technologies in the aerospace sector.

The Washington Post is investigating a cybersecurity breach that compromised the email accounts of several of its journalists.

Xiaomi is set to launch its new electric SUV, the YU7, at the end of June, advancing the original July release date.

Beijing’s subway system reportedly became the first to let riders tap any of the five major card schemes, including Visa and American Express, across its entire system.

COMMUNITY

🎥 Join our next live workshop

Join our next workshop today at 3 PM EST with Keanan Koppenaver, Technical PMM at Retool. By the end of the workshop, you’ll know how to supercharge and automate your prospect follow-ups with AI agents.

RSVP here. Not a member? Join The Rundown University on a 14-day free trial.

See you soon,

Rowan, Jennifer, and Joey—The Rundown’s editorial team