What is Sextech?
It’s one of the smallest members of the Tech family. You’ve heard of FinTech or FoodTech, now discover SexTech. It encompasses all new technologies focused on sexual pleasure. From education to health and pleasure, every aspect of human sexuality has been enhanced or transformed by technology. It’s a small one, admittedly, but one with enormous potential, with a market estimated to reach $46 billion by 2026. For almost 5 years now, SexTech companies have also been present at CES in Las Vegas, the world’s largest trade show for innovative consumer electronics technology. This year, attendees were able to discover ever more surprising, and connected, innovations from companies that are increasingly interested in integrating AI into our relationships.
Sex & AI: in search of a virtual companion
The use of technology in the field of sexuality is not new. New, more ingenious products have been available for years. Take connected sex toys, for example, which you can activate from the other side of the world with your smartphone, to show your partner that you’re thinking about her/him. But here we’re talking about the next step: recreating a real feeling of rapport, and intimacy, with a virtual partner. We already knew about the sex doll, but now imagine being able to have conversations with it (note that for a few years now, apps like Nomi.ai have been letting you have a virtual boyfriend or girlfriend), or “live” your favorite porn thanks to augmented reality and new male masturbators (like the AI-powered Solace Pro from Lovense ).
In 2020, Forbes magazine was already asking about the limit of AI in our relationships. The first obstacle is financial, as this type of robot is very expensive to build. The second is behavioral. At the Love & Sex with Robots Congress in Canada in August 2024, scientists and experts in the field weighed in on the subject, wondering whether all this technology might encourage unrealistic expectations, or lead to a form of isolation. Simon Dubé, a researcher at Indiana University’s Kinsey Institute, answers “Is technology a cure-all? No. But why shouldn’t technology be part of the solution?
SexTech for Good: serving your health and pleasure first and foremost
As you can see, AI has many surprises in store for us. But before we look ahead to a future worthy of a Spielberg film, it’s important to remember that SexTech is much more than just gadgets. Above all, it’s a collective of entrepreneurs committed to your sexual health and pleasure. As Magali Olivier reminds us in her article “Jouir pour un monde meilleur” (Enjoying for a better world), SexTech seeks above all to advance morals and preconceived ideas about sex, which is often associated with pornography. More fun for women, more inclusion for people with disabilities, seniors and members of the LGBTQIA+ community. It’s also a new hope for the challenges of sexual health for all.
So is AI and sex a good or bad idea?
