Do you ever look longingly at a stranger and think, I just want to hug you? It’s okay. It’s not weird. Everyone needs a hug or a spoon or a nice shoulder. Society just makes it weird. And personal-space boundaries. And sometimes restraining orders.
For all those stranger-hug urges that are occasionally frowned upon, there’s a new app that Salon hails as the “Tinder of cuddles.” Cuddlr is a location-based app that helps you find a person in walking distance who also wants a hug. It’s simple: You select a person based on their first name, picture, and cuddle rating. You agree to meet, snuggle, and go your separate ways. You can even post a photo of your snug sesh, if you so choose!
A snuggle matchmaking app leaves a lot of space for creepy, right? But creator Charlie Williams insists that isn’t about sex at all. It’s about the pursuit of snuggling as its own activity. The app even removes age and gender. (Totally fine — the only pertinent information really is spoon preference: big, little, bi-spoon?) He says to Salon, “Cuddlr is all about respecting and connecting, rather than looking and judging.”
Hear that, everyone? Let’s not ruin this with our sleazy hookup attempts like we do everything else. (LinkedUp! I’m looking at you.)
