Former Hinge executives are leveraging AI technology to solve the modern friendship crisis with their new startup Rodeo, a planning app designed to help friends organize social activities more efficiently. Founded in 2023 by Sam Levy (former COO of Hinge) and Tim MacGougan (former CPO), the company recently launched a beta version on Apple’s App Store.
Rodeo uses artificial intelligence and large language models (LLMs) to streamline the chaotic process of making plans with friends. The app’s core functionality allows users to send social media posts from Instagram or TikTok, or upload screenshots from group chats, and the AI automatically extracts relevant details like event information, restaurant details, and scheduling data. MacGougan explained that Rodeo uses LLMs specifically for natural language processing and context decoding to wrangle information from various sources.
Interestingly, despite its AI-powered foundation, Rodeo isn’t marketing itself as an AI company. “We never called ourselves an AI company,” Levy told Business Insider. “It wasn’t really in our pitch decks, ever.” Instead, the founders position their product as a “second brain” for planning activities, focusing on the user experience rather than the underlying technology.
The startup has secured funding from multiple venture capital firms including 359 Capital, Oceans Ventures, F7 Ventures, and BAM Ventures, plus angel investors, though they declined to disclose the exact amount raised. Levy noted the company continues raising capital on a rolling basis.
Rodeo currently has approximately 20,000 people on its waitlist and has onboarded about 5,000 users to the early beta version. The app allows users to organize collaborative lists and integrates with existing communication platforms rather than replacing them. The startup plans to formally launch with additional social features in the first half of 2026.
The app enters what’s being called the “friendship economy,” addressing a documented friendship recession. While competitors like Bumble’s BFF and newcomer 222 focus on helping people make new friends, Rodeo differentiates itself by strengthening existing relationships. “How do you truly keep in touch with your close friends over time?” Levy asked, emphasizing their mission to help friends “be better friends with their friends.”
Key Quotes
We never called ourselves an AI company. It wasn’t really in our pitch decks, ever.
CEO Sam Levy explained Rodeo’s deliberate strategy to avoid AI-focused marketing despite using large language models as core technology. This reflects a broader trend of companies prioritizing user experience over technology buzzwords when positioning their products to investors and consumers.
Rodeo uses AI under the hood to do some of that ‘wrangling,’ specifically a large language model (LLM) to help with natural language processing and decoding context.
Co-founder and former Hinge CPO Tim MacGougan described how the app leverages artificial intelligence technology. The LLM processes information from screenshots, social media posts, and group chats to automatically extract relevant planning details, demonstrating practical AI application in consumer apps.
Give us your chaos.
This is Rodeo’s user-facing messaging that encapsulates the app’s value proposition. Rather than emphasizing AI capabilities, the startup focuses on solving the messy reality of modern social planning, showing how AI companies are increasingly hiding sophisticated technology behind simple, relatable messaging.
This is taking the time you’re spending on social media or online and leveraging it to help you ideally spend more time in real life with your friends.
CEO Sam Levy articulated Rodeo’s ultimate goal of using AI to facilitate real-world connections rather than replacing them. This positions the app as a bridge between digital communication and in-person relationships, addressing concerns about technology isolating people.
Our Take
Rodeo’s “stealth AI” approach may signal the next phase of artificial intelligence adoption in consumer technology. While 2023-2024 saw countless startups prominently advertising AI capabilities, Rodeo’s success in raising venture capital without emphasizing AI in pitch decks suggests investors are becoming more sophisticated about evaluating actual utility over technological novelty. The use of LLMs for natural language processing to extract structured data from unstructured sources like screenshots and social posts represents a practical, high-value application that genuinely improves user experience. This contrasts sharply with many AI features that feel forced or gimmicky. The friendship economy focus also demonstrates AI’s potential to address social challenges rather than just productivity or entertainment. As AI becomes commoditized infrastructure, companies that integrate it seamlessly while solving real human problems—rather than those shouting about their AI capabilities—may ultimately win consumer adoption.
Why This Matters
Rodeo represents a significant trend in AI application development: using powerful technology invisibly to solve everyday problems rather than leading with AI as a marketing strategy. This approach reflects a maturing AI industry where the technology becomes infrastructure rather than the product itself.
The startup’s focus on the “friendship recession” addresses a genuine social crisis, particularly post-pandemic, where people struggle to maintain relationships despite constant digital connectivity. By applying AI-powered natural language processing to extract actionable information from the chaos of group chats and social media, Rodeo demonstrates how LLMs can create practical value beyond chatbots and content generation.
For the broader AI industry, this signals an important shift: successful AI products may be those that hide their AI capabilities behind seamless user experiences. As Levy’s comment about not pitching as an “AI company” suggests, investors and users increasingly care about solving real problems rather than technology buzzwords. This could influence how future AI startups position themselves and how the technology integrates into consumer applications.
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Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/meet-ex-hinge-execs-helping-make-plans-with-friends-rodeo-2025-12