A chat with Tinder co-founder Jonathan Badeen

Tinder co-founder Jonathan Badeen’s roots run deep in the Kansas City area.

A native of Leawood and a graduate of Barstow High School, Badeen stopped by Techweek Kansas City Thursday to discuss the popular app — Tinder — that he helped create. Badeen, who’s also a fan of the University of Kansas Jayhawks and Kansas City Royals, chatted with media for a few minutes after his packed presentation at the inaugural Techweek Kansas City.

Here’s a bit from his conversation.

On his Kansas City roots …
You always dream of doing something like [Tinder]. To get to come home and share this and hopefully, maybe help the industry here would be great. I live in LA but I did not leave KC for lack of love- it’s a place that is very special to me and that I hope to return to in the near-ish future.

On the importance of safety on Tinder and its variety of uses …
We’re always concerned about our users’ safety and we invite them to use it for all sorts of purposes. People have found jobs on there, use it as a travel app to find out what locals go do when they’re out and about, and we encourage that. We see it as a way for people to meet for a variety of reasons. … We went with Facebook authentication so it provides a little layer of (safety) where you can’t put in a different name or age, so hopefully if you’re willing to share that info with your friends, it will be there.

On the differences of Kansas City before and after he left for Los Angeles ….
I’m so excited that Techweek is here. I think growing up, it’s very important to have people around you that are successful or at least trying to do tech. This community will only strengthen every few years and with the next generation that comes up because you’re going to have that neighbor who sees their friend’s dad or mom who started this company. It allows you to realize that it’s something you can do and you can do it right here from home.

On Kansas City’s growing tech community …
I hear all over the place about how KC is growing, and even out west. I think one of the great things is that Google did Kansas City a huge solid favor with the Google Fiber introduction and that’s put a lot of light on Kansas City. Kansas City seems to be taking up the task and taking advantage of it. I’m also seeing a lot of the initiatives that the city is doing with becoming a smart city and it’s only going to get better.

On the strengths of Kansas City …
The fact that Techweek is here right now is a testament to the growth that’s here. When growing up, tech didn’t even seem like a viable option to me. I didn’t know anyone that was in tech really, maybe more IT or fixing computers. The entrepreneurship, I didn’t see it. … Pre-Google Fiber, I almost moved back to KC and I only stayed out West because I wasn’t sure how many opportunities there were going to be. I’m feeling much more confident about that and can’t wait to return and be able to keep myself occupied with a tech industry at home.

On the latest at Tinder …
We just announced a launch in Australia and hopefully it will be in the US here shortly. It’s called “Superlike.” Everyone gets one free a day, plus users get five free a day. It allows you to express your interest in another person by letting them know that you like them without it being an anonymous like. We’re really excited about that. We have more things that are coming that I can’t really talk about that will help plus users and our free users. The list is never-ending.