Hey all!

If you’re here to…

🧑‍🎓 Learn more about sextech

👔 Land your next job in the industry

🎪 Join events and find new opportunities

…Then you’re in the right place.

This one is coming out a littttle late as we have been heads down graduating Cohort 10 of Sextech School!

Another week, another bunch of happenings in sextech and sexual wellness!

This week in sextech

1. Haptic tech makes it’s way to Unbound’s newest product 🤌 

Haptic feedback, also known as tactile tech is part of a wider trend in lifestyle products. We’re most used to it being incorporated into phones, touchscreens and video game controllers.

The potential for it’s use in sextech and sexual wellness is immense.

Last week, Unbound launched the Squish - operated by your touch, the toy changes vibrations based on the intensity of your grip. A very cool use of haptic feedback making its way into more mainstream sexual wellness.

If you want to geek out on the other potential industry uses, check out this report from MIT on Lovewear: Haptic Clothing that Allows Intimate Exploration for Movement-Impaired People.

And read on to learn more about Squish (and also marvel at the campaign, a brilliant example of sextech branding done differently) 👇️ 

2. Venmo Founder Bryan Johnson talks penis rejuvenation 🍆

Penis rejuvenation may be more dinner party conversation now than ever thanks to Venmo Founder Bryan Johnson who lit up X (and the media) with his very public erection tracking experiment this past week.

I spoke to some other founders who are in this space and confirmed the methods he used aren’t endorsed (there are better solutions out there) but hey, now we’re all talking about rejuvenation …will this be as powerful as the what the word “wellness” has done for the sexuality industry…? Time will tell.

On the positive, I find it great to see a male figure in the public eye talking about his sexual health. Even better if he teamed up with a qualified spokesperson so his messages don’t devolve into misinformation a la Gwyneth Paltrow’s series of unscientific Goop claims…

The thread that started all the fuss 👇️ 

3. Lovehoney’s next experiment with AI🌪️ 

I am a big fan of experimenting with different technologies, even if it is just for marketing purposes. “AI” is a big umbrella for a lot of things, and right now it’s a hot topic for headlines. Lovehoney, who said searches for “AI Tool” have grown by 231% in the last year, previously made headlines for writing an erotic novel with AI, so they are no stranger to the technology and its attention drawing potential.

Their latest experiment to visualise orgasms using AI is …well, really quite pretty! That’s may the only utility for this but hey, it’s fun.

More on the process on their website here.

4. Funding news 💰️ 

Sneaking this one in as it was released today… alas, I don’t have a TechCrunch sub but some nice stats and encouragement from TechCrunch.

“Sex tech startups have raised $111.9 million this year, and if the trend keeps up, they’ll be on track to at least raise as much as they did in 2022, if not more. [275.8M]”

🎪 Events

August 31: Brisbane, Something Tech 

October 1-22: Sydney, SXSW Sydney ₍👋 _{I’ll be speaking at this one!)}  

September 17: Sex Positive World Orientation

October 1-3: Reimagine Sexuality Summit 

October 4-5: London, Sifted EU (Cindy Gallop Sextech Panel)

October 5-7: Melbourne, Talk Dirty in French

October 15-22: Sydney, SXSW Sydney ₍👋 _{I’ll be speaking at this one!)} 

October 13-15: Denver, Sexual Health Alliance Sexological conference

October 18, New York: Sextech Mixer NYC Tech Week 

November 8, Sao Paulo: Sex Summit 👋 _{I’ll be speaking at this one!}

💼 Jobs

What did you make of this week’s newsletter? 

What else would you like to see in here?

Bryony

ps. Maybe you’re ready to join us at Sextech School?

Hit reply and include “STS”. I’ll send you details on our next intake.