Tube crush: a smart way to flirt on the go
A new location-based app is designed to break the ice underground — no wi-fi required. Get connected, says Katie Strick
NINA Tumanishvili wants to get Londoners talking on the Tube. Not in person (mercifully), but via the very devices that are supposedly isolating us: our phones.
Her new app, TubeChat, is a high-tech solution for connecting commuters across the capital: a short-range messaging platform that lets you chat, play games and crucially, exchange flirty messages with fellow passengers underground. It’s like an offline version of Happn — the perfect icebreaker for your Northern Line crush.
You don’t need wi-fi; it works by turning your phone into a “beacon”, says Tumanishvili, who’s spent the last year developing TubeChat at her Clerkenwell-based start-up HelloHub. The app uses Bluetooth to connect your phone to nearby devices within 200m, so it doesn’t matter if you and train bae end up in different carriages (though it does mean you can’t see their smile when they get your message).
Send them an emoji on the platform to get their attention, then challenge them to a game of I Spy while you’re waiting in a tunnel. Be prepared for aubergines: the app’s preprogrammed icebreakers include “what’s your favourite emoji” and “it is hot in here or is it just you?” — one to save for the Bakerloo Line, perhaps.
Like any dating app, safeguarding is crucial, says Tumanishvili. You choose your username and personalise your profile based on how much information you want to share — keep your picture blank to maintain an element of mystery. It doubles up as a fun tease if your IRL crush is sitting next to you. If things get uncomfortable, you can export your chat history anonymously for reporting abuse.
There’s a group messaging element too. TubeChat lets you chat with up to 10 users nearby and, ideally, Tumanishvili wants to see “a few people in the carriage having a chat” — useful when you want to chat to your friends without others listening in.
The opportunities extend above ground too. The app will work anywhere with low or no connectivity, whether that’s a basement coffee shop, a busy concert arena or Glastonbury’s fields next summer. Just make sure you all have an iPhone — TubeChat is only available for iOS with an Android version coming “soon”.
The app’s openers include ‘What’s your favourite emoji?’ and ‘It’s hot in here — or is it just you?’