AUSTIN, Texas — The founder of Austin-based dating app Bumble has announced she is stepping down from her position as CEO.
Whitney Wolfe Herd has run the company for nearly a decade. She started her career as a co-founder of Tinder before she left that company in 2014 to found Bumble with the goal of creating an empowering online dating space for women.
"Under Wolfe Herd’s leadership, Bumble has become one of the world’s leading networking apps, enabling members to connect with confidence whether dating, networking or meeting friends online," Bumble Inc. said in a press release. "Bumble Inc. has also become known as a global brand that champions women’s safety online."
In February 2021, when Wolfe Herd took Bumble public, she became both a billionaire and the youngest woman to take a company public in the U.S., at age 31.
She will remain with the company as executive chair. She will be succeeded by Lidiane Jones, who currently serves as the CEO of Slack.
“It’s a monumental moment, one that has taken a great deal of time, consideration and care, for me to pass the baton to a leader and a woman I deeply respect. This move to Executive Chair gives me the ability to step forward into a new and exciting role, get back to my founder roots and bring immense passion and focus to this next chapter of growth," Wolfe Herd said in a statement.
According to Bumble, Wolfe Herd will be succeed by Jones on Jan. 2, 2024. Jones will remain at Slack until the end of the year.
Bumble Inc. is the parent company of Bumble, Bumble for Friends, Badoo, Fruitz and Official. Learn more about the company's apps.