#StartupsEverywhere Profile: Heather Hopkins, Founder & CEO, Hulah
This profile is part of #StartupsEverywhere, an ongoing series highlighting startup leaders in ecosystems across the country. This interview has been edited for length, content, and clarity.
Creating a Safer and More Transparent Dating Experience
Hulah is a dating app that empowers women to take control of their dating lives and date only better guys. On Hulah, any woman (in a relationship or single) can join and become a ‘ringleader,’ endorsing guys for other single women to date. In our conversation with Founder and CEO Heather Hopkins, we explored the current challenges surrounding content moderation, intermediary liability, and issues faced by female entrepreneurs.
Can you tell us about your background and what led you to create Hulah?
TW // Sexual Violence: My journey to founding Hulah has been quite unique. I initially pursued a career in acting during my childhood, but things took an unexpected turn when I lost a role due to not having enough social media followers in the era of the growing popularity of social platforms around 2016. My agent challenged me to figure out a way to establish a social media presence. That's when I ventured into the world of podcasting and created one of the first dating podcasts. Through this, I built a community of single individuals who shared their experiences and frustrations with dating apps. Unfortunately, a negative personal experience of being sexually assaulted from a guy on a dating app also played a significant role in inspiring me to create Hulah.
Could you explain what Hulah does?
Hulah takes a unique approach to safety and accountability in the world of dating apps. On our platform, every man must be endorsed by a woman to join, allowing every woman to see the person who introduced him. This feature adds layers of safety, accountability, and comfort for our female users. As for our user base, we are primarily focused on major cities right now. We launched our beta in March, and we're on the brink of reaching 150,000 users. Notably, our growth has been organic, with minimal investment in marketing. Now, we're gearing up for the next phase, focusing on scaling and ramping up our marketing efforts as the product grows more sophisticated.
How do you handle content moderation, especially concerning issues like intermediary liability?
Content moderation plays a pivotal role in our platform. We employ a combination of manual and AI-based moderation techniques to ensure a safe and enjoyable environment for our users. In the dating space, a significant issue is abusers and sexual predators exploiting these platforms to find their next victims. It's unfortunate and truly heartbreaking to hear about the amount of women affected by this. Laws that enable us to moderate content on Hulah like Section 230 are really important for us to be able to curate a safe space for our users without the threat of a bad-faith lawsuit from an individual upset that we removed their content that violated our rules.
However, a major challenge we encounter is the lack of accessible resources to blacklist potential abusers and sexual predators from our platform. We believe there should be a system in place for companies like ours to access a list of such individuals, enhancing user safety. Unfortunately, we've faced limitations in this area, which I believe should be addressed.
How do you approach data privacy and security concerns and what challenges have you encountered?
Data privacy and security are top priorities for us. We adhere to industry best practices to safeguard user data. However, navigating the complex landscape of varying state laws can be both challenging and costly, particularly for a startup.We are committed to meeting all legal requirements and ensuring user data remains secure. Simultaneously, we actively explore partnerships and technologies that can assist us in maintaining the highest standard of data privacy. It's hard when you're a smaller company because you want to do your absolute best, but many of these measures come with exorbitant costs as well.
Could you share your experiences as a female founder in the app development space and your thoughts on access to funding for startups, especially those led by women?
Being a female founder in the tech world comes with its unique set of challenges. There are many nuances to being a female founder. It was only when I started becoming more knowledgeable about these nuances that I was able to break through them. I've learned to adapt and develop strategies to overcome them. For instance, I've established certain protocols, such as no evening meetings–only lunch or coffee meetings, and communication primarily through email, to ensure my safety and professionalism.
Access to funding has been a significant hurdle. My journey included months of unpaid work as I struggled to secure funding for Hulah. However, I eventually found an investor who believed in me and my vision and then more followed on. It's a mix of persistence, networking, and finding that one person who sees your potential.
What are your future goals for Hulah?
Our ultimate goal for Hulah is to be the safest dating app for women filled with better guys. We aim to create an environment where healthy relationships can thrive. Our focus is on building a strong foundation of couples (safe men + women) today that will pave the way for a brighter and safer future, in the world of online dating. If we can create healthy relationships now, that is going to positively impact the livelihoods of future generations. We also want to make a positive impact and promote respectful interactions between all users. Hulah is not just about safety but also about fostering healthy connections and empowering users to date better. We're committed to this mission and excited about the positive changes we can bring to the dating ecosystem.
All of the information in this profile was accurate at the date and time of publication.
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