What Happened To The Cheekd Dating Service App On Shark Tank Season 5?

"'Shark Tank" has no shortage of entrepreneurs pitching their unique dating app ideas, from Season 6's successful "Tank" reject Coffee Meets Bagel to Season 13's feline-centric Tabby. Coming through the doors in the hit ABC show's fifth season was another lovestruck individual who sought to bring the realms of online matchmaking and real world interactions together to birth the dating app Cheekd. 

Created by and named after its founder Lori Cheek, the idea behind Cheekd is simple. Users are provided a set of business cards with different pickup lines and a code pertaining to their online Cheekd account. A card can be passed along to a person the user comes across in public and the two can further connect on the app. Cheek had carved out a successful career in architecture but had ambitions to launch her own business. In 2008, Cheek witnessed a friend of her's successfully ask a woman out on a date by writing on a business card and placing it on her table. The moment resulted in the creation of Cheekd in 2010, with the company eventually getting notable publicity from the New York Times and Oprah Winfrey. 

Cheekd's next big score wasn't a date, but rather an appearance on "Shark Tank" Season 5. Although Cheek was thoroughly confident that Cheekd would be a dominant force in the online dating space, the sharks didn't hold back their less-than-stellar perception of the business, seeing nothing but problems with the operation and concept. 

Lori Cheek entered the tank requesting a $100,000 investment for 10% of Cheekd. After explaining the concept, Robert Herjavec questioned what motive people would have to use a physical card in tandem with online dating given that dating apps and websites are designed for those who might be too shy to approach someone otherwise. Mark Cuban backed up Cheek by sharing how his days of being single frequently consisted of him and friends inviting girls to parties by making business cards containing their information.

While Cheekd possessed 4,500 active users at the time, only a little more than 1,100 were paying for the service. In total the company, had brought in $56,000 over the course of three and a half years. Cheek sold her entire Christian Dior wardrobe and put in $120,000 to launch the business, surviving in New York by living with friends. Her belief was that Cheekd's struggle was due to its website experiencing problems after its launch. She felt that the newest website updates, the soon-to-launch mobile app, and an investment could help turn the tide. She emphasized her intent to make Cheekd a household name.

To say the sharks weren't impressed with what they saw would be putting it lightly. Mark Cuban deemed Cheek as delusional while Robert Herjavec stated that her business model was the definition of insanity. Kevin O'Leary, visceral as usual, compared Cheekd to a rabid dog that needed to be shot immediately. Lori Greiner and Barbara Corcoran were nicer but nonetheless critical, admiring Cheek's ambition and drive while admitting that the business itself was going nowhere. 

While it's debatable if Cheekd's pitch has reached the same level of infamy as Season 7's Pavlok, it's safe to say that Lori Cheek got one mean reality check during her time on "Shark Tank." However, the entrepreneur was well-aware of this possibility before stepping foot before the celebrity investors. To her, there was a brighter light at the end of the tunnel regardless if she got a deal or not.

Speaking with Choose What in 2025, Cheek shared, "The truth is that I didn't actually believe I'd walk out of there with a deal ... Really, I didn't. What I did know was that if my episode got selected to air, 8 million people were going to know about Cheekd and how determined I was to see it succeed at all costs. I was a little worried that the outcome of the show would tarnish my brand but knew there was no chance I was about to quit." Cheek's instincts were right on this notion, as within 48 hours of the segment's initial broadcast on Feb. 28, 2014, Cheekd's website received 100,000 new visitors and thousands of emails from both viewers and investors. 

While Cheek wasn't going to take the sharks' advice and close her business, she nevertheless recognized that the operation had issues. She hired a CTO who aided her in working through the company's technical and financial woes. Additionally, Cheekd retired its physical cards, with many of its capabilities being transferred into its mobile app that launched on Valentine's Day 2015. 

Cheekd remains in business to this day according to founder Lori Cheek's LinkedIn and her recent interviews. However, over a decade after its time on "Shark Tank," Cheekd is far from being placed among the best dating apps out there. It appears that the company is still having technical problems with the app, as its website only lists it being available on the iOS App Store. In doing research for this article, the app never loaded nor did it appear in any app store when we searched for it. Reportedly, the app connects users through Bluetooth, notifying users when they're physically near a potential match.

App issues aren't the only problems that Cheekd had experienced in the years since "Shark Tank." In September 2017, a lawsuit was filed against Cheek by Alfred Pirri, Jr. who claimed that she stole his idea, stating that his therapist informed Cheek of the concept in 2008. The case would eventually be dismissed in a pre-trial conference after nearly a year of attempting to get in front of a judge. Pirri Jr. went on to sue Cheek again in 2019 of misappropriation of trade secrets with the intent of receiving over $5 million in damages. While this case ended up going further, it too was eventually dismissed and ended more happily for Cheek, who had her attorneys fees paid for by the plaintiff. 

Despite facing titanic competition, fighting numerous financial and legal battles, and receiving quite the brutal beatdown on "Shark Tank," Lori Cheek has not given up on her vision. With that said, Cheekd still has major uphill battles to conquer if it hopes to break through, and, unfortunately, nothing substantial enough has taken it to that next level. 

That hasn't stopped Cheek from thinking of her future ambitions. Among these is continuing to build upon the concept of Cheekd with similar services that encourage meaningful interactions in an increasingly distant society. "My plan is to expand and create a spin off," Cheek shared in an interview with Billion Success. "A New Yorker of 25 years, I recently relocated to my home state of Kentucky and am working on a new app idea inspired by my own struggles trying to network, meet and date new people in a new city .... My solution will allow users to have a more organic, yet virtual way, of making connections for anything from business, networking, fitness, friendship, hobbies or anything with anyone all over the world!" 

Whether this vaguely-described idea — which sounds very similar to most social media platforms — ever comes to fruition has yet to be seen, but at the very least Cheek remains proud of her accomplishments with Cheekd thus far, telling Choose What, "I've taken a major risk (both financially and mentally) and surrendered my career in architecture and design, but my heart and mind are in this project every waking moment. I've never been more dedicated to anything."