Known
In short: Known is a San Francisco start-up behind a 'swipeless' dating app. Instead of profiles and forms, it uses a voice-based AI conversation to get to know users, then arranges in-person dates. Celeste Amadon and Asher Allen co-founded it. The product grew out of a tool for automating restaurant bookings for dates. In late 2025 Known announced $9.7 million in funding from Forerunner, NFX, Pear VC and Coelius Capital.
Key facts
| Type | Dating platform |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | USA |
| Founded | 2025 |
| Founder | Asher Allen |
| Apps and brands | Known |
People
- Asher Allen, Co-founder
- Celeste Amadon, Founder & CEO
Apps and brands
- Known: Voice-AI dating startup with 26-minute onboarding sessions.
Stories about Known
- Known matches San Diego singles after 30-minute AI voice interview
Known, the swipe-free app from two 22-year-old Stanford dropouts, matches members after an AI voice interview of about 30 minutes and charges $15 per match. - Known's AI Voice Matchmaking: Innovation or Survival Tactic?
Known, a San Francisco startup, offers an AI voice chat and one match at a time, while Bumble plans to move beyond swiping with AI-driven discovery. - Known's San Diego Move: A Test of Swipeless Dating's Scalability
Known, the swipeless dating app, is expanding from San Francisco to San Diego in July, its first test outside the Bay Area. - Known's Pay-Per-Date Model: A Direct Challenge to Match Group's Economics
Dating app Known charges $15 per confirmed first date, not subscriptions, and has raised $10M. Its founder reports a 50% acceptance rate on proposed matches. - Known's $9.7M Bet: Can Pay-Per-Date Kill the Subscription Model?
Known raised $9.7M from Forerunner, NFX, Pear VC and Coelius Capital to charge $30 per date, and claims an 80% match-to-meetup rate.
Also mentioned in
Questions about Known
What does Known do?
Known is a San Francisco start-up behind a 'swipeless' dating app. Instead of profiles and forms, it uses a voice-based AI conversation to get to know users, then arranges in-person dates. Celeste Amadon and Asher Allen co-founded it. The product grew out of a tool for automating restaurant bookings for dates.
Who founded Known?
Known was founded by Asher Allen.
Where is Known based?
Known is based in USA.
When was Known founded?
Known was founded in 2025.
Which apps does Known own?
DII's directory lists Known.