Zimmermann emphasized that the team of developers was not involved in the actual process of determining what is generally considered to be attractive. Instead, a series of linked computer components — also often referred to as an “artificial neural network” due to its similarities with human thinking — took over. The site’s concept has been the focus of two academic studies that analyzed artificial intelligence, as well as social behavior, in dating apps.

“The neural network itself then learns what parts of the face to look at. Visualizations showed that the neural network tends to focus on parts of the face that are “non-standard,” i.e. if you have beautiful eyes, a large nose, no hair, a sexy beard,” Zimmermann said. A similar strategy was used to guess people’s ages — wrinkles, for example.