'Invisible Girlfriend' Startup Provides Fake Love For A Price
Invisible Girlfriend, a new company recently born out of Startup Weekend St. Louis, has emerged as the solution for those without a significant other - providing potential subscribers with options such as text messaging, "emergency interaction," gifts, and a relationship status change on Facebook.
"Our audience might come from a variety of situations: maybe they're in a same-sex relationship they're hiding from disapproving relatives, are trying to avoid the unwelcome advances from a coworker, or have chosen to focus on their work instead of romance," creator Matt Homann told BuzzFeed of who might actually use such a service.
The company, which is still pre-launch, offers three monthly subscription options: "Just Talking," which offers text messages, automated calls, and gifts for $9.99, "Getting Serious," with the previous options plus Facebook relationship change, and real voicemails and gifts for $29.99, and finally: "Almost Engaged," which offers 'custom girlfriend characterization' and live phone calls at $49.99.
"We're not trying to build a girlfriend they can believe in - that's a whole other level of technology," Homann told Riverfront Times. "We're giving them a better story to tell, even if the story isn't true."
Invisible Girlfriend was pitched for the first time at Startup Weekend more as a joke, but a 10-person team of developers and business experts teamed up to create a rough product in just 54 hours.
They took home first place in the competition - along with $3000, according to BuzzFeed. There are also future plans to create an Invisible Boyfriend version.
"It went from, 'Let's have some fun. Let's make everyone laugh,' to, 'We have the making and talent to build something that works,'" Homann told Riverfront Times.