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Pickleball, condo BBQs: Singaporeans connect via AI-powered friendship apps amid global trend

These platforms create opportunities for highly compatible, offline connections in a hyper-digital age

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Chloe Lim

Chloe Lim

Published Fri, Jan 23, 2026 · 02:02 PM
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    • Singapore-based lemon has accumulated more than 600 active users to date, with a handful of regular customers who attend its events every week.
    • Singapore-based lemon has accumulated more than 600 active users to date, with a handful of regular customers who attend its events every week. PHOTO: LEMON

    [SINGAPORE] Artificial intelligence (AI)-powered social facilitators – or friendship apps – are gaining traction with people seeking offline connections.

    Singaporeans, along with many others globally, are using these platforms to meet strangers for anything from pickleball games to comedy shows, for a shot at new, authentic friendships.

    Users fill out an extensive personality quiz, with a range of questions from music tastes and budgets for nights-out to political values. Data collected allows platforms to suggest the most fitting hangouts for users to choose from – and match them with others, within their gathering of choice.

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