The CES is owned and run by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), which claims to be keen on promoting game-changing and value-adding tech developments. For companies that get to showcase their products at CES (especially startups), the expo provides a massive platform to get known and advertise their tech-products.
Is CES finally becoming open to sex technology? The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is, without doubt, the largest technology and innovations expo, and has been experiencing exponential growth since the turn of the century. In 2019, CES incredibly attracted over 175,000 attendees who came to view and interact with over 4,500 exhibiting companies from across the globe.
Speakers from top tech companies also get to discuss emerging trends and how they are likely to impact the digital space. From issues on cybersecurity and big data to user privacy and ethics in online businesses, large tech companies are clearly not being left behind.
In 2020, CES is enjoying its 53rd year since its inaugural expo in 1967. Top tech companies like Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Apple, Facebook, and Samsung are all expected to showcase their innovations for the year while also discussing pertinent tech issues through their selected keynote speakers.
A glimpse into CES` approach to Sex Technology
Last year was a pretty controversial one for CES, especially after awarding the CES Innovation Award to Ose, a sex toy that stimulates the female body to achieve blended orgasms, only to rescind the award. Controversially still, Ose won the award again and was allowed to showcase in 2020’s expo.
Has it always been like this? Ose creator Lora Haddock was lucky that her Innovations and Engineering award garnered much traction, and major media companies like New York Times and BBC News ran her story, which helped increased nationwide attention. Of course, CES had to bulge, especially after Haddock drafted an open letter citing double standards and gender bias when it comes to sexual health and sexuality.
All the unfolding drama aside, CES agreed to allow sex tech companies to showcase their products in the 2020 exhibition, provided they demonstrate innovation and inclusion of emerging or new tech. Sex technology companies, as expected, were elated at the opportunity of showcasing their various innovations at the world’s leading tech- expo, and rightly so!
So, without wasting any time, let’s take a look at some of the sexual reproductive or sexual technology companies that will be showcasing their products in this year’s CES.
OSE Robotic Massager
Ose is not an ordinary sex toy designed to provide basic pleasure to a woman’s genitalia. This is a unique, award-winning massager that provides blended orgasms to the user. It goes the extra mile to stimulate a lady both inside and outside the body simultaneously. According to Lora Haddock, the creator of this hugely controversial but widely accepted sex toy, she embarked on a journey to come up with a device to help women experience ecstasy like never before. But she didn’t want to do it the usual way; instead, Haddock opted to go the research way to ensure that she comes up with a product that could genuinely help ladies achieve intense full-body orgasms that she prefers terming as blended orgasms.
As Haddock delved further in her research, it hit her that the adult toys market lacked a product that provided women with blended orgasms. That is, both clitoris and G-spot orgasms. According to the creator of the game-changing sex toy Ose, she worked with Dr. John Parmigiani, a robotic expert plying his trade at Oregon State University, working as an associate professor of mechanical engineering.
Immediately, Haddock had the prototype; she applied to showcase the toy, Ose, at the CES 2019, under the innovation category. She won an award in the famed exhibition’s Robotics and Drone category.
This leads to the question, how does Ose work? Well, the toy uses biomimetic simulation to stimulate the G-spot and clitoris simultaneously to help users achieve full-body climax. It boasts of a flexible body that easily adapts to the user’s anatomy to allow for a custom fit. It is not rigid, and it doesn’t come with conventional measurements, it is designed to suit the anatomy of a user.
The G-spot massager is unique in that it mimics the stroke or the touch of a finger through the use of micro-biotics. The clitoris stimulator, on the other hand, replicates the mouth and tongue sensations over the clitoris while also providing intense thrumming through the clitoris` full structure. Ose comes with impressive customizable controls that allow you to determine the pace and intensity of stimulation. Users can focus on pleasure points while taking full advantage of the device’s flexibility.
What makes Ose stand out as a tech product is its use of biomimetic simulation for stimulating both the G-spot and the clitoris simultaneously. Not many sex toys can manage such a feat; in fact, very little can stimulate the clit and G-spot at the same time. The few that manage to stimulate both pleasure points lack the flexibility and compatibility to fit different body types. This is why Ose is tipped to be a game-changer in the adult toy market.
The use of micro-robotics that mimics human touch like mouth, fingers, and lips makes Ose a unique sex toy, which explains why the technology is patent pending. You get to be in control of the sensitivity and intensity of the ‘touches.’
Popular media companies like BBC, The Verge, Cosmopolitan, and Women’s health have recognized the sex toy, terming it as the future of women sex toys.
Read more: Teledildonic Remote Sex Toys Reviewed
Love Crave Pleasure Toys
Love Crave is a US-based sex toy company co-founded by Ti Chang, and industrial designer Michael Topovolac, a serial entrepreneur renowned for his bold innovations. Crave was formed with the aim of creating products that revolve around sexual pleasure.
With many sex toy manufacturers already active in the highly competitive adult toys market, Love Crave sought to take a different approach that focuses on personalized pleasure. The company claims to be fully committed to coming up with innovative designs that aim to promote sexual discovery and overall sexual health.
But, what makes Crave stand out a company reliant on sex technology?
As part of its marketing strategy, Crave came up with a mind-blowing idea of allowing its clients to design their own pleasure toys. Interesting right? They go to fairs and events; you’ll probably find them parked up in the “adult section,” eagerly waiting for interested or curious clients to pop by their booth or station. The plan? To have honest sexual conversations with clients who are willing and open enough.
Crave has this interesting “Build-A-Vibe Workshop,” a small space within the workshop that you get to enter and view how the vibrators are made. And here’s the best part, they give you a chance to practically design these vibrators to your own liking. They show you everything about coming up with your own vibrator. You know, setting up the rubbery part, waterproofing the device and finally piecing everything together one piece at a time. Crave doesn’t stop there with their impressive innovation, they give you a URL where you can visit and select your preferred vibratory patterns, thus giving you a toy that is truly customizable to your personal needs and preferences.
Crave uses its fully converted 1961 Airstream as a mobile vibrator toy factory, design studio, and showroom. The crave team transverses the country, looking for people in need of ‘owning their pleasures’ and taking their sexual lives to greater levels. You can expect to find a smiling Chang inside the airstream, ready to help you out and make you a sex toy designer, at least for one afternoon!
If you are not one to predesign your sex toys, you can also head inside the airstream and purchase from their impressive collection of vibrators and sexual jewelry. All their toys are rechargeable and boast of unique designs that allow you to tap into your inner sexual self. Crave also makes slim vibrators like the vesper that can be used by kinky and adventurous people who don’t mind having private pleasure in public.
You can select from a wide range of sex toys that utilize technology to take pleasure to another level. Their products like the Duet, Wink, and Duet Flex boast of crowd-sourced, highly-unique vibration patterns that are guaranteed to give you full-body orgasms.
If you manage to get inside their’ own your pleasure’ dildo factory, you’ll see first-hand that Crave doesn’t play when it comes to user safety. They have a team that is fully dedicated to selecting, testing, and determining user-friendly material that is acceptable and healthy for human use. This has enabled Crave to receive acceptance to trade fairs, shows, and exhibitions dealing with adult sex toys.
The prospect of designing your own sex toy is one that many sex-toy clients aren’t likely to turn down. Regular vibrators usually become boring after repeated use-kind of like how watching the same porn over and over gets you bored. But with Crave’s unique inventions, people actually get a chance to own their pleasures, which isn’t really bad for people in touch with their sexual selves.
Love My Pulse Lubricants Start-Up
Pulse is a company that is 100% dedicated to women’s sexual wellness, especially for those in their midlife, almost experiencing menopause. As part of life, we have to accept that every day we grow older. For ladies, this means accepting that hormonal balance, as well as bodily functions, are subject to rapid changes, and they often start or end with changes in the fluid-concentration in the vagina.
Pulse was inspired by personal struggles encountered by founder and C.E.O Amy Buckalter, who, on the company’s website, narrates how changes in her body made her concerned. For her, the onset of menopause increased vaginal dryness, which consequently made sex painful and hugely uncomfortable. Once her gynecologist suggested the use of personal lubricants to grease up her privates, she realized just how uncomfortable most of these lubes were.
They were too cold such that inserting in the vagina was often a mood killer. Buckalter even went to the extent of improvising by placing the lubes in heating pads, wrapped bottles, and even submerging the tubes in warm water just to make them less cold. No technique seemed to work. But that was not the only problem that the Pulse CEO encountered. She soon discovered that most lubricants used questionable ingredients that would often irritate her kitty down there. Then she decided that she’d had enough on it, and would try to come up with a solution not only for herself but also other lady’s undergoing the same predicaments.
Her troubles inspired the formation of Pulse, a startup dealing with personal lubricants made from natural ingredients that help bring glide and slickness back to intimate sexual experiences. Pulse’s lubes are easily dispensed and gently warmed to leave ladies feeling comfortable and in the mood, when they want to get freaky under the sheets.
If you think that the lubes are the best part about Pulse’s innovations, then you are probably wrong. Of course, the lubes are game-changers in that they are sourced from natural ingredients that increase not only comfort but also usability, but the lube dispenser makes Pulse stand out as a serious player in the vaginal lubricants industry.
What is the Pulse Warming Dispenser?
First time or occasional users of lubes more often than not appear undisturbed by the chill feel that comes with such lubes. But if your body struggles with discomfort, pain, and dryness, then it is only a matter of time before you get concerned at the cold feel associated with most lubes, especially considering that you will be using these lubes frequently during sex.
The dispensers come with pods that heat the lubes from the inside through a heating system that is patented. You no longer have to flinch due to the feel of cold lube. The technology is welcome as it is both hygienic and convenient as you simply swipe your hand beneath the warmer to access the measured and perfectly warmed lube.
How does the warming Dispenser Function?
To use this welcome sexual innovation, you simply open the warmer and slide in your favorite lube. The pulse warmer has a button at the top that starts warming once you press. An indicator light will flash as your lube gradually heats (takes roughly 45 seconds to a minute), thus allowing you to get cozy with your partner or toys. Immediately the indicator stops flashing; it is time to get busy and enjoy some quality intimate time with your partner.
The Pulse Warming Dispenser is fully compatible with the wide range of Pulse Pods and helps to dispense well-measured and heated lubricants or oils into your ready hands without having to fumble with sticky bottles. It makes the sexual adventure more enjoyable and worth the while, especially if using lubes has become a routine due to bodily changes.
What makes Pulse’s Lubes stand out from other Lubes?
It is no secret that the female genitalia is highly sensitive, and as a result, requires adequate care. Lubricants that lack hydrating formulas provide short-term solutions during sex, which is not ideal. Pulse manufactures its products using healthy formulas that are fully loaded with minerals, amino acids, antioxidants, and amino acids that calm and hydrate sensitive skin.
Pulse manufactures three types of lubes H20h, Aloe-ahh, and Spoil me. H20h, as the name suggests, is water-based. It is made from plant cellulose, purified water, Chia seed extract, and citric acid. This lube is long-lasting and gentle to even the most sensitive skins. You can count on the H20h if you aren’t a fan of sticky, goopy lubes.
Aloe-ahh is a silicone-based lube that comes fully packed with Vitamin E and Aloe. Similar to other products manufactured by Pulse, this quality lube is FDA-cleared and made from silicone lube that is medical-grade, meaning your genitalia will remain clean and healthy when using this lube. A feature that makes Aloe-aah amazing is its absorption resistance. Instead of getting absorbed by your vaginal walls, this lube rides on the surface of your skin, ensuring that you remain free from yeast infections, UTIs, and unwanted change in pH levels down there.
The final product manufactured by Pulse is the Spoil Me massage oil. The massage oil is made from natural ingredients and designed to calm your skin. It should, however, not be used as a lubricant or with toys. This product is exclusively meant for massage.
Another great feature that makes lubes made from Pulse reliable is that they are all cleared by the FDA and utilize 100% medical-grade formulas free of gums, parabens, fragrance, glycerin, and petrochemicals.
You also want to use a condom-compatible lubricant. Pulse has products that are condom compatible, while others like Spoil me are not ideal for use with condoms. H20h, one of Pulse’s best-selling lubes, is water-based and appropriate for use with any type of sex toy. Aloe-ahh is ideal for all toys except those manufactured from porous or silicone materials.
What to Expect from the CES Exposure
The move to include sex tech companies in this year’s CES is a hugely welcome one, at least by startups looking to promote sex toys with the aim of curbing the negative perception associated with adult toys and sexual health. For pioneers like Ose’s Haddock, she views this as an opportunity to start a much-needed conversation on sexual health. Her argument is that women need to take pride in their sexuality and that they have every right to experience the true potential of their bodies.
If Haddock’s assessment is anything to go by, sex tech companies are here to stay. The Ose CEO argues that, similar to household items that improve day to day life, so, too, do sex toys enhance the lifestyle of users. Experiencing orgasm should not be treated as a taboo or something unusual for women. Provided the toys add value, then at least they should be given a shot.
With all the controversies surrounding the inclusion of sex toys in serious tech expos, it will be interesting to see how adult toys companies take advantage of the opportunity. But based on the trend so far, research and more research is likely to be the trend of the day. Companies are spending more on research to come up with game-changing devices. Pulse, for instance, saw a problem in lubes that were not suitable for repetitive use, they were too cold and sticky. The solution? Pulse sought to research on better ways to develop lubes naturally and come up with a dispenser that warms its lubes.
This is similar to the approach undertaken by Crave. You know, to abandon the one-size-fits-all ideology in the sex toy business. The owners thought about the problem of dissatisfaction and opted to give clients the chance to customize and determine their own pleasures. While some might argue that these developments in the adult toy industry don’t have much weight compared to tech products released by the likes of Samsung, Apple, and Amazon, the fact still remains that these tech companies identified a problem, and conducted extensive research to come up with solutions.
This new decade represents a new wave, a cultural shift in technological perceptions. 2022 is going to be an interesting year, at least from a sex tech perspective. The curtains have finally been drawn, and light is starting to penetrate in the sex tech industry. Will tech gurus appreciate the efforts undertaken by these sex tech companies? Or will CTA decide against allowing such startups more space in its globally recognized annual tech expo? Only time will tell. But for now, sex tech companies can enjoy the spotlight.
While the sex toy entrepreneurs remain adamant that they are here to stay and provoke meaningful sexual health conversations, it remains to be seen whether the tech world will be accommodative enough to grant them platforms and audiences at the grandest of expos.
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