Solution: Release of a new product to a limited audience - NYT Crossword

You may be shocked to discover this, but I am not necessarily up-to-date on all current trends or memes. So I was delighted to learn about the alternate meaning of SOFT LAUNCH. The clue was changed by the puzzle editors to the more common meaning, which is the “Release of a new product to a limited audience,” but the original referred to announcing a new relationship on social media a little bit at a time, so as not to put pressure on either person. A SOFT LAUNCH could include a photograph that shows two people holding hands (but does not show their faces) or, as Mr. Musa says in his notes, that shows the back of one’s romantic prospect’s head.