'Shark Tank': Mark Cuban invested $200,000 in this dating app that matches you based on things you both hate
Online dating can feel so exhausting. How many times can you read that a potential match is a foodie or loves to travel? That's why a different kind of dating app pairs you based on things you find irritating.
Both hate people who only eat organic? Both can't stand excessive selfie-taking? You may be a match made in Hater heaven.
"There are studies that show people that hate the same things actually form closer bonds than people who love the same things," says Hater's founder and CEO, Brendan Alper, while pitching his business to the judges on ABC's "Shark Tank" on Sunday. He went on the show seeking $200,000 for a 5 percent stake in the company.
Alper's app, which is free, garnered over 500,000 users after launching right before Valentine's Day in 2017. However, at the time of taping, Hater had 8,000 to 10,000 daily active users, who were most concentrated in New York City and Oslo, according to Alper's pitch.
"That is why you're here, because that's not anywhere near enough for people to really get dates from it," investor Mark Cuban says.
Alper is no stranger to the business world — before launching his app, he was making six figures working on Wall Street.
"I was working at Goldman Sachs for a number of years," he tells CNBC Make It. "Didn't like it very much, but I needed to make some money right out of college." After about six years in finance, he decided he'd had enough and was ready to pursue a different passion.
"I decided that I was going to quit and move to LA and become a comedy writer," he says. But in the end, "neither of those things happened."
The reason? While just getting started in comedy, Alper wrote a sketch idea about an app that matches people based on things they hate. The idea began to resonate.
"When I told people about it, they thought it was really funny, but everyone just kept saying, 'Why doesn't this exist as a real app?'" he explains. So, he decided to put comedy on hold and create it.
"In order to pay for the development of the app I had to cash in my 401(k) that I had been saving up, and all of my savings," he says. "In hindsight, it probably wasn't the smartest move, but I was all in."
Now, that hustle is paying off as his venture is seeing interest from investors. So far, Hater has raised $500,000 with an investment from the founders of mobile gaming company King, Alper says on "Shark Tank." And thanks to the show, the app has found a new supporter: Mark Cuban.
Cuban agreed to invest $200,000 in exchange for 7.5 percent equity stake in the company, plus an additional 2.5 percent in advisory equity.
Alper chose to partner with Cuban over offers from three other sharks: Barbara Corcoran, Robert Herjavec and Lori Greiner. To win Alper over, Cuban touted his access to celebrity influencers who could help the app gain notoriety. But Alper had been hoping for an offer from Cuban all along.
"Going in I really wanted Mark," Alper explains on the show. "He has experience in the technology space, and he has the connections that can really take Hater to the next level."
Corcoran and guest investor Rohan Oza gave their congratulations to Cuban on Twitter.
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Disclaimer: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to "Shark Tank."