Dating is not easy, especially in today’s era of modern dating. Encountering someone by chance, falling in love romantically, and having memorable stories to share with friends or even future children seems increasingly difficult. Nowadays, "dating" often begins on dating apps where users specify their preferences and easily set up profiles with a few taps. The app then filters matches to find those with the highest compatibility.
Looking back at online datingit beganin 1994 in the United States with the launch of kiss.com. Since then, Match Group emerged as a major owner of dating websites and apps, including Tinder, which has dominated the market since its 2012 debut.
In the same year Tinder became globally known, another dating app launched that took a different approach from other platforms at the time (which were often developed by men). That app was “Coffee Meets Bagel.” It aimed to create a space where people could find quality matches rather than focusing on quantity. The app emphasizes safety, ensuring users are not exploited or sexually harassed.
Coffee Meets Bagel or CMB was founded by three South Korean sisters from the Kang family who immigrated and grew up in the United States. They persevered through the competitive dating app market to make CMB a beloved dating platform for many users today.
This article from Thairath Money'sHow to Make Moneycolumn introduces Arum, Dawoon, and Soo Kang, three sisters who left secure jobs to pursue their dream in technology entrepreneurship. They faced uncertainty as founders and the pressure of being Asian women striving to succeed in a male-dominated industry.
Soo Kang is the eldest sister, with younger twin sisters Arum Kang and Dawoon Kang. All three were born and raised in Seoul, South Korea. Their family background shaped their entrepreneurial spirit: their father ran a metal recycling business for over 40 years, and their mother, initially a homemaker, later started her own business.
“I might not fully understand all the stresses of running a business, but I saw them go through it. Part of me thought it was exciting to create something from nothing. My siblings and I used to casually come up with business ideas since school,” Arum said.
The sisters were inspired to start their own business from a young age, frequently discussing ideas for ventures. When the twins were about 12, the family sent them to the U.S. as immigrants to pursue better education under the care of relatives there.
The pressure of being immigrants added to their self-doubt. Growing up in Seoul had exposed them to intense competition and high expectations, and carrying their parents’ hopes made them fear taking risks.
Even Dawoon Kang, who was accepted to study business at Stanford University, wondered, “Did they call the wrong number?” She lacked self-confidence, and moving abroad at a young age diminished their speaking confidence, often feeling embarrassed by their limited English.
Their turning point came in 10th grade when they took their first trip alone from Seattle to Washington, D.C., without informing their parents in Korea. Returning from that trip, they faced major challenges but learned the meaning of “freedom” and that they could do anything as long as they stayed together, Arum recalled.
Arum Kang, one of the twins, conceived the idea for the dating app. While studying business administration at Harvard Business School, she became fascinated by the power of social platforms and communities, studying the dating service industry thoroughly and recognizing its large, growing market.
In 2011, Dawoon Kang was working as a Vice President at JP Morgan. Arum invited her to join in building the dating app, and Dawoon immediately quit her stable job to do so.
“I wanted to start a dating app because many talented female friends of mine were still single and had problems with dating, including my own sisters,” Arum explained the app’s origin. She noted that most dating apps at the time were designed by men, reflecting a male perspective on dating.
She wanted to create an app focused on women, emphasizing safety and relationship quality rather than quantity. Many women users then felt harassed by sexually objectifying messages and unsafe online experiences.
After Dawoon agreed, Arum recruited their elder sister Soo Kang, then working as a designer in New York, to join the team to design the app. Dawoon managed the people and team-building, while Arum took the business leadership role and remains CEO today.
Everything started in Soo’s New York apartment. Initially, they recruited trial users from friends and family in New York, reaching their first 1,000 users in 2011. They faced many struggles until one user, an Angel Investor, contacted them and offered to help relocate to San Francisco. They met multiple venture capitalists and secured their first funding from Lightbank in 2012.
CMB is not just a typical swipe-left or right dating app. Its algorithm (which the Kang sisters say runs multiple processes simultaneously) recommends the most compatible matches, called "Bagels," up to 21 potential partners. Users can like or pass, and the app then selects the best match from mutual likes.
Once matched, users can chat for only seven days. The founders explained this encourages people to meet in person or continue conversations elsewhere. Although CMB offers fewer daily matches than other apps, this is intentional to foster better relationships rather than endless swiping.
One iconic moment that brought global attention to Coffee Meets Bagel was their appearance on Shark Tank in 2015, seeking $500,000 for 5% equity. The sisters estimated their business could reach a $10 million valuation.
At that time, CMB had between 100,000 and 500,000 users, revenue around $87,000, and was not yet profitable. However, its premium subscription model and “Anti-Swipe” concept attracted Sharks’ interest. Given the dominance of large players like Match.com and Tinder under Match Group, the Sharks saw more risk than opportunity and rejected the deal.
One Shark, Mark Cuban, offered to buy CMB for $30 million, which could have boosted the company. The sisters declined decisively. Arum Kang explained, “We believe this business can grow as large as Match.com,” adding that Match was becoming a billion-dollar company, and she saw CMB reaching that level.
“Mark Cuban’s $30 million valuation affirmed and honored all our efforts to build this company,” Arum told Business Insider in 2025. “But I’m very confident it was the right decision.”
Although they left Shark Tank without funding, they gained increased users and investor interest. Last year, CMB earned about $25 million annually and is valued at over $150 million (more than 4.66 billion baht at exchange rates on 13 Feb 2026).
The company has completed two funding rounds: Series A raising over $7.8 million and Series B raising more than $12 million. Today, Coffee Meets Bagel is among the most popular dating apps.
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