Technology startups are fleeting and prone to failure, cropping up and disappearing as fast as our screen-addled attention spans. But rarely does one stick out quite like Adoptly, an apparently earnest attempt at making a Tinder-like mobile app for child adoption. The four-person operation, which quietly launched a Kickstarter campaign last week, says it wants to connect prospective parents with adoptable children.

In a concept video, adults swipe right or left to accept or reject kids looking for a family. It’s a dark vision, marrying the superficial nature of modern dating with the important work of finding homes for orphaned children. But is it the real deal, or a scheme designed to highlight the shallow and tone-deaf stereotype of…

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