A new app Carrot Dating lets men offer bribes in return for first dates.
It is the latest controversial site from MIT graduate Brandon Wade, who also founded “sugar daddy” dating site SeekingArrangement and auction site What’sYourPrice.
And just like these sites, Carrot Dating’s launch has been met with familiar criticisms, being labeled as “sexist”, “misogynistic” and “like prostitution”.
Carrot Dating lets men buy credits in order to send gifts to women to tempt them on a first date, like dangling a carrot.
Set options for these gifts include jewellery, flowers, a tank of gas or plastic surgery.
The press release says: “There’s only one method of manipulation that has stood the test of time: bribery.
“It’s a concept so simple that even animals understand — give a dog a bone, and it will obey. Give a woman a present, and she’ll…”
Kind of like an entrepreneurial troll, Wade has learnt what cocktail of sexist concepts and deliberately antagonistic language to use to get his sites attention.
And although Carrot Dating was picked up by the Daily Mail, Business Insider, Metro and Huffington Post, whether this will convert to signups remains to be seen.
To look at the app, go here.