Joel Simkhai

Joel Simkhai is the Founder and CEO of Grindr.

Founded in 2009, Grindr is the pioneer and largest all-male meet-up app that uses location-based technologies to bring together a global community of more than 2 million active daily users in 192 countries. Joel’s inspiration for Grindr was simple; he wanted to know who was gay around him but had a hard time figuring it out. He wanted a better way to help guys meet one another, and when smartphones with GPS came out, he knew the time was right. Since its launch, Grindr has become a worldwide sensation and garnered tremendous media and pop culture attention.

Prior to forming Grindr, Joel worked in several different fields, from finance to journalism to a start-up, before creating his own Internet marketing firm in 2003 that was later sold as Grindr gained in popularity. Born in Tel Aviv, Joel immigrated with his family at the age of three from Israel to New York City. He later attended Tufts University, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in a double major of International Relations and Economics. Joel currently resides in Los Angeles.