Sisters Launch AI Relationship Advice App Hot Girl Hotline to Offer Safer Alternative to General Chatbots
Bootstrapped by New York sisters Baila and Stanford-trained computer scientist Sumrin Mudgil, the iOS and web app uses behavioral science and Socratic prompts instead of companion-style emotional dependency. Safety guardrails can direct users to 988.
Two sisters launched Hot Girl Hotline in 2026, an AI-powered app designed to give young women personalized dating and relationship advice while avoiding the emotional dependency and safety risks associated with general-purpose chatbots.
The New York-based startup was co-founded by Baila Mudgil, a former social media consultant, and her sister Sumrin (“Sumi”) Mudgil, who studied computer science at Stanford. The app is available on iOS and the web, and the company is currently bootstrapped. It is set to participate in TechCrunch Disrupt’s Startup Battlefield 200.
The founders say the app was built in response to a growing trend of people already turning to large language models like ChatGPT for personal relationship advice — a use case they believe warrants a more careful approach. General-purpose chatbots have faced criticism and legal action over alleged manipulative conversation tactics linked to negative mental health outcomes.
“We’re not trying to be an AI companion,” Baila said. “A companion is really going after solving loneliness, escapism, boredom — and you can rely on a lot of emotional dependency from that AI companion.” Hot Girl Hotline instead aims to deliver advice grounded in behavioral science, using a Socratic approach that guides users toward their own conclusions.
Safety guardrails are built into the product. If conversations raise concerns, users are referred to resources such as the crisis hotline 988. The AI is also designed to end conversations and encourage users to take real-world action rather than continuing to ruminate. The app does not sell or train on user data, encrypts data in transit and at rest, and applies a zero-data-retention policy when using third-party AI models.
Hot Girl Hotline monetizes through a $9.99 per month subscription, which hundreds of its most active users are already paying. The company plans to expand beyond relationship advice into areas such as beauty and lifestyle, and may incorporate advertising in the future.