‘It felt risqué:’ How a computer dating service launched in 1965 changed our love lives
Operation Match, the first computer-based matchmaking service in the United States, was launched in 1965 at Harvard University. The initiative was born out of a desire to connect men with women, as students Jeff Tarr and Vaughan Morrill were disenchanted with the traditional mixers and found it challenging to meet women on campus. The service used a 75-point questionnaire to match participants, which included details about their interests, education, physical traits, and attitudes toward sex.
The questionnaire was revolutionary for its time, and the process of using an IBM machine to match people felt “daring and thrilling” to those involved. The service charged a fee of three dollars and provided participants with the names and phone numbers of five potential matches. Within half a year of its launch, approximately 90,000 questionnaires had been filled out, demonstrating the service’s initial success.
Operation Match paved the way for future dating services, including Dateline in the 1970s and 80s, and eventually led to the rise of commercial computer dating with the launch of Match.com in 1995. The early 2000s saw the emergence of specialized platforms like Grindr and Ashley Madison. Today, dating apps like Tinder and Hinge are part of a multi-billion-dollar industry, with around 30% of Americans using dating apps, though it remains unclear if finding love is still the primary goal.
