In this week's episode, we speak with Maxime Barbier, founder and CEO of TimeLeft. The fast-growing social dining platform is bringing strangers together for shared experiences around the world.

Launched in 2020, TimeLeft has evolved through four major pivots before finding its winning formula: small-group dinners in cities worldwide. Today, the subscription-based service operates in 250+ cities across 50+ countries, matching groups of six for midweek restaurant meetups, with new formats including women-only nights, bar meetups, and even group runs.

Barbier shares the lessons learned from his early career as a nightclub promoter, through building social media brands, to creating a platform designed to fight loneliness by fostering in-person connections. TimeLeft deliberately avoids the trappings of dating apps—no profile pictures, minimal preconceptions—to focus on authentic interactions and friendships, though romance sometimes blossoms.

The company’s matching algorithm uses personality testing, language preferences, budget, and group balance to create engaging, comfortable evenings for its 3 million users. With word-of-mouth growth fuelled by media interest in combating loneliness, TimeLeft has become a leader in the emerging “IRL tech” space.

Looking ahead, Barbier envisions TimeLeft not only helping people meet new friends but also strengthening existing friendships—potentially using AI to prompt and arrange meetups. For him, the mission is clear: use technology to create more meaningful moments in the limited “time left” we all have.

Mark Rollings, Co-Founder at Paranormal Date by The GDI & Social Discovery Podcast

Marco van der Woude, Breeze App by The GDI & Social Discovery Podcast

Adam Cohen-Aslatei, CEO of Three Day Rule by The GDI & Social Discovery Podcast

Richa Rival, CEO and Founder of Walnut App by The GDI & Social Discovery Podcast

Eventful is a dating app focused on facilitating offline dating experiences to combat user burnout from traditional apps.

In this episode, Tegan discussed Eventful's matching process based on shared interests and date activity suggestions. She also goes into detail about the company's origin, approach to dating and event booking and focus on mental well-being. Tegan also talks about the evolution of dating apps, the current status of a London launch and future vision.

Violet Lim, CEO of Lunch Actually by The GDI & Social Discovery Podcast

In this episode,

Pieter Reuse, Founder of BeeDee by The GDI & Social Discovery Podcast

In this episode, Ethan talks to industry consultant Bill Alena to discuss his innovative approach to dating apps, focusing exclusively on the 18-28 demographic and creating a vibrant, music-driven user experience.

Ethan shared how his own experiences, combined with those of his friends, led him to realize that the current dating landscape wasn’t truly meeting the needs of younger users. While apps like TikTok were capturing gen Z’s attention with energetic, engaging content, dating apps felt outdated and lacked excitement.