Future of Sex
tagline
  • Remote Sex
  • Virtual Sex & Entertainment
  • Robots
  • Human Augmentation
  • Sex Tech
  • Dating & Relationships
  • Bizarre Bazaar 18+
  • Future of Sex Community
  • Remote Sex
  • Virtual Sex & Entertainment
  • Robots
  • Human Augmentation
  • Sex Tech
  • Dating & Relationships
  • Bizarre Bazaar 18+
  • Future of Sex Community
  • Policing Intimacy: AI Companion Apps Are Removing NSFW Features, and People Are Not Happy

  • The Future of Sex Is Non-binary Genital Surgery That Advances Bodily Agency

  • Is Equity Crowdfunding the Future of Sex Tech Investment?

  • Sex Tech News: New VR Sex Game, a User-Generated Erotica App and ‘Porn for TV’ Streaming Relaunches

  • Blyynd Brings on Investors to Build Anonymous Sexting App

  • A Fitbit for the Penis? The FirmTech Tech Ring Product Review

  • Sex Tech at CES 2023: 6 Brands Exhibited, Including an Anonymous Sexting App

  • Sex Tech Mixers, Hackathons & Conferences [UPDATED]

Future of Sex is supported by our readers. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Home > Virtual Sex & Entertainment > The Future of Sexual Sensing: Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality and Neurostimulation

Virtual Sex & EntertainmentImmersive Entertainment
Home›Virtual Sex & Entertainment›The Future of Sexual Sensing: Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality and Neurostimulation

The Future of Sexual Sensing: Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality and Neurostimulation

By M. Christian
September 11, 2015
10771
2

Part one of The Ten Greatest Sexual Innovations to Come

A young woman wears a virtual reality headset.

As the old saying goes: the only constant is change—and the last few years have certainly seen a lot of it. So many changes, in fact, that it’s hard to think of any aspect of human society that hasn’t been touched by technological innovation over the last decade or so.

Books became ebooks, the Internet went from novelty to essential, electric and hybrid vehicles have become ubiquitous, gay marriage changed from “don’t talk about it” to “no big deal” (at least in some countries), and 3D printers left the prototype stage to become at-home appliances—just to hit some highlights.

But the greatest changes are right around the corner. Many of these innovations will occur in one of our favorite areas: sex.

Part one of our three-part tour into future sex developments is this speculation on sensory tech: how our seeing—and feeling—will be more than believing. These incredible sensory advances will be introduced to us via three innovative technologies.

Innovation One: Virtual Reality

Despite some initial clumsy attempts, virtual reality promises to become a societal game changer. Like many huge innovations, the basic idea of virtual reality is essentially simple: an artificial world accessed by miniature monitors over the eyes.  These, coupled with motion sensors, means when you turn your head, the view through those monitors changes as well.

Where the game changing comes in is two pronged. The first is that VR promises a level of total immersion that we have never experienced before. With a VR headset—like the popular Oculus Rift—you’ll feel like you’re actually in whatever artificial world you’re visiting.  Right now all we’re missing to complete this total immersion is haptics—touch technology, but that’s right around the corner.

The other prong is part of what drove the ebook revolution in publishing: privacy. With a VR set, no one will know where you are but you.

With VR you can visit—or create—any erotic world of your choosing in privacy. There is, literally, nothing you could not see nor do in a synthetic reality. As the tech gets better and better, soon the line between “real” reality and a virtual experience will get thinner and thinner.

Gazing into my—albeit cracked—crystal ball, it’s not too difficult to envision a few years from now. With VR we’ll not just be able to see films, but be parts of them. Interactivity will mean that entertainment, erotic or otherwise, will be multi-dimensional and totally immersive.

A video of a young man wearing a VR headset shows how enthusiastic people are already becoming about virtual reality sexual simulations. He can barely be torn away from a demonstration, and we can only imagine what he is seeing from his perspective.

I can hear a few worry-warts fretting about a mass exodus of humanity into artificial realities. Sure, a few might walk off into an sensual/digital fantasy land never to be seen again, but most will stay around.

The reason?  It’s what happens when you superimpose the total freedom of artificial reality with the real world: augmented reality.

Innovation Two: Augmented reality

The problem, if there is one, with virtual reality is in that total immersion it cuts the user off from reality. But when VR is combined with digital cameras and motion tracking tech, what we end up with is called augmented reality.

Again, technologically, augmented reality is rather easy to comprehend. In fact, we’ve seen some developments with gear such as the sadly chastised Google Glass project.

In essence, it’s a virtual reality rig, but one that is projected onto the inside of a pair of glasses.

Here’s where things get really interesting.  One of the great curses of mankind is ignorance. Even with the Internet at our fingertips, with smartphones and the like, there’s a lot that we could know that we don’t bother accessing. With augmented reality, though, you could glance at anything and instantly know everything you ever wanted to know about it.

Virtual reality means that we’ll be able to escape into artificial worlds where we’ll be able to experience and interact with anything, sexually or otherwise. But with augmented reality we’ll be able to learn, understand, and share anything in the real world with anyone else.

Again, staring into the misty future, it’s easy—and thrilling—to imagine a future where looking at someone through a pair of augmented reality glasses, or contact lenses, could tell you that person’s erotic interests, availability, their orientation, their gender preference, or anything else they want to share with you or the world.

This information would be overlaid in your environment as part of your visual experience. Sexual ignorance and guesswork could become things of the dim and dusty past.

Innovation Three: Direct Neurostimulation

With virtual and augmented reality, we can see both the world of our dreams and all about the world around us. But for all their power, both still lack total and complete immersion: pure sensory stimulation.  Even when haptic technology gets good enough that we can touch and be touched from a distance, there will still be a barrier between lifelike and life.

This is where direct neurostimulation comes in. Yet again, the idea is simple: wiring human minds either together or to a computer. Yes, the technology is very much in its infancy, but we are already seeing huge developments. For the first time, using neurostimulation, the deaf can hear, the blind can see, and people can seamlessly operate prosthetic limbs.

Very soon we’ll either have the technology to literally run wires into our minds or we’ll be accessing it through less invasive and icky means via dermal sensors.

In short, direct neurostimulation is the ultimate sensory technology. With it we’ll be able to control every part of what we see, hear, feel, taste—and feel pleasure with!

This future is going to be interesting. To put it mildly. With direct neurostimulation, we’ll soon be able to access every part of the human mind. Unlike with virtual reality, these constructs will be as good as from realreality. We’ll be able to couple not just with our bodies but with every part of our consciousness.

As with augmented reality we’ll be able to have enhanced perceptions, plus some senses that people may very well like to invent.

In this future, we’ll be able to record what we experience and then play it back or edit it into something new. We’ll be able to actually see, feel, and comprehend what living someone else’s life is actually like. Want to try being queer, or straight, or asexual?  Want to have the memories of anyone, ever?

Let’s go a little farther: how about puppeting? If you have total control of the human brain there’s no reason why you shouldn’t be able to switch minds with someone else. Never mind editing and recording, with this level of technology you could swap physical forms with other people. Take a vacation away from yourself—by being in someone else’s body.

Don’t Fear The Future

Agreed, some of these sensory and sexual developments may, at first, appear to be a little staggering, but keep in mind how our present, day-to-day lives might seem from someone only a few decades in the past. The fact is virtual reality, augmented reality, and direct neurostimulation are coming—and probably sooner than you think.

Very soon we’ll see incredible innovations in how we look at the world—or even create entirely artificial realities to experience with brand new senses.

One thing, for sure, as with ebooks and smartphones and so many other pieces of fantastic technology, they’ll be integral components of our lives, erotic or otherwise.

It’s just up to our imaginations to see—and feel, and more—just how intimate we can get with all this new technology.

Stay tuned for part two of our series on the Ten Greatest Sexual Innovations to Come: Sexual Biotechnology!

Image source: Nan Palmero

M. Christian

M.Christian (they/them) loves nothing better than exploring the intersections of sex and technology—and speculating on the future of both. A highly regarded erotica writer they have six novels,12 collections, 100+ short stories, and 25 anthologies as an editor to their name. Their non-fiction regularly appears in many sites, but they're most proud of being a regular contributor to Future of Sex.

Of their erotic fiction, Tristan Taormino said that “M.Christian is a literary stylist of the highest caliber: smart, funny, frightening, sexy—there's nothing [they] can't write about… and brilliantly.”

Reflecting their unique ability to sympathetically and convincingly write for a range of genders and sexual orientations, their stories have appeared in multiple editions of Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, The Mammoth Books of Erotica, and others. Their collection of gay erotic fiction, Dirty Words, was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award.

While a majority of their stories have been collected into books like Dirty Words, their fondness for combining sex and science fiction is clearly evident in collections that include Rude Mechanicals, Technorotica, Better Than The Real Thing, Skin Effect Effect, Bachelor Machine, and Hard Drive: The Best Sci-Fi Erotica of M.Christian.

As a novelist, M.Christian’s versatility is on full display with Running Dry, The Very Bloody Marys, Brushes, Painted Doll; and the somewhat controversial queer BDSM/horror/thrillers Finger's Breadth, and Me2.

M.Christian has worked on the industry’s production side as an Associate Publisher for Renaissance E Books and as a Publisher for Digital Parchment Services. The latter dedicated to celebrating the works of science-fiction legends such as William Rotsler, Jerome Bixby, Jody Scott, Arthur Byron Cover, Ernest Hogan, and James Van Hise.

Covering topics like BDSM safety, sexual education, senior sexuality concerns, queer and gender issues, plus reviewing a variety of sex tech products, M.Christian’s non-fiction has appeared on sites like Kinkly, Tickle.Life, Sexpert, Queer Majority, Sex for Every Body, and—of course—their ongoing work for Future of Sex.

If there’s anything M.Christian enjoys more than writing, it’s teaching. A featured presenter, sometimes with their friend Ralph Greco Jr, at national sex and BDSM events, they have lectured on kink play (with an emphasis on safety), polyamory, boosting sexual creativity, and erotica writing--for beginners or those wanting to go pro.

M.Christian is a cohost on two popular sex-education podcasts: Love’s Outer Limits with Dr. Amy Marsh and Licking Non-Vanilla with Ralph Greco, Jr.

M.Christian's Books (Sizzler Editions)
M.Christian's Audiobooks
Previous Article

Q & A: Interactive Webcam Model Stassi ...

Next Article

Experts Share Top Sex Tech Predictions in ...

Related articles More from author

  • A photo of a "love tester" machine.
    AugmentationVirtual Sex & EntertainmentImmersive Entertainment

    ‘Brainwave Love Checker’ Will Pick Your Ideal VR Girlfriend by Reading Your Mind

    September 22, 2016
    By M. Christian
  • Remote SexVirtual Sex & Entertainment

    BaDoinkVR and ViRo.Club: A Match Made In Sex Tech Heaven?

    April 16, 2019
    By M. Christian
  • Lovense Sex Toys now supported by 3DXChat.
    Virtual Sex & Entertainment

    Multiplayer Sex Game 3DXChat Now Supports All Lovense Sex Toys

    May 12, 2021
    By Jenna Owsianik
  • Virtual Sex & EntertainmentImmersive Entertainment

    What You Need to Know About the UK’s New Laws Against Online Pornography

    November 16, 2018
    By Sponsored Post
  • VR porn entrepreneur Ela Darling stands topless covering her breasts with one arm and holding a VR headset with the toher hand.
    VR PornVirtual Sex & EntertainmentImmersive Entertainment

    The PVR IRIS: A Stand-alone VR Porn Headset That Won’t Break The Bank [UPDATED]

    September 27, 2018
    By M. Christian
  • Tokyo is home to many love hotels designed for erotic encounters
    Virtual Sex & EntertainmentImmersive Entertainment

    The Future of Sex and Architecture: Love Hotels, Microapartments and VR

    January 25, 2016
    By M. Christian

Leave a reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

  • Sex Tech

    Menstrual Disc That Can Be Worn During Sex Receives $1M

  • Sex Robots
    Dating & RelationshipsRobots

    No Reason to Fear Sex Robots Replacing Humans, Researchers Say

  • Robots

    Award-Winning and ‘Family-friendly’ Film about Sexbots Set to Compete for Spot at Cannes

Virtual Lust is a 3D interactive sex game.
3DXChat
Discover the best virtual sex parties and 3D sex worlds.
  • TOP REVIEWS

  • Woman in blue lighting with yellow binary code projected across her face.

    Policing Intimacy: AI Companion Apps Are Removing NSFW Features, and People Are Not Happy

  • Porn for TV logo (computer screen graphic with pink u shapes and a mouse cursor).

    Sex Tech News: New VR Sex Game, a User-Generated Erotica App and ‘Porn for TV’ ...

  • The Blyynd logo with two screens. One has a chat screen and one has the sexual desire options listed.

    Blyynd Brings on Investors to Build Anonymous Sexting App

  • FirmTech Tech Ring

    A Fitbit for the Penis? The FirmTech Tech Ring Product Review

  • Sex Tech at CES 2023: 6 Brands Exhibited, Including an Anonymous Sexting App

  • What Vibrating Buttplug Support in a Video Game Taught Us About the Future of Webcam ...

  • Is Virtual Reality Dating Going Mainstream?

  • Sex Doll Brothels: Reality vs. Expectation

  • Replika AI Chatbot saved human marriage

    How Replika’s AI Chatbot Saved One Man’s Human Marriage

  • Meet the Humans Forming Romantic Relationships With AI

    Replika Romance: Meet the Humans Forming Romantic Relationships With AI

  • The future of sex is mind-reading AI that reveals your deepest, most unconscious fantasies

    The Future of Sex Is Mind-Reading AI That Reveals Your Deepest, Most Unconscious Fantasies

  • Sex Robots Are Getting Closer to Feeling Human-Like With Second Skin Materials

    Sex Robots Are Getting Closer to Feeling Human-Like With Second Skin Materials

  • R/gonewildaudio's gender inclusive audio erotica

    /R/gonewildaudio: An Array of Free, Inclusive and Categorized Audio Erotica

  • Fantasy Inspired Sex Toy by Tentickle Toys

    Out of This World: How Fantasy-Inspired Sex Toys Could Be the Next Big Trend

  • Virtual Sex in the Metaverse

    Virtual Sex Will Soon Become a Reality in the Metaverse

  • OnlyBans Game Play As A Sex Worker

    Play as a Sex Worker in New Onlybans Game

  • Black chess pieces laying across an orange background.

    Teledildonics and Chess: The Unexpected Possibilities That Could Enhance Sex

  • A couple with a woman sitting on a man's lap. They each are holding the Tenuto 2 with one hand.

    Tenuto 2 Erection-Enhancing Vibrator Rises To The Occasion

  • Woman looking at a laptop in a bed. You can see a blurry European city outside of the window.

    Here’s How Often Each European Country Is Searching For Sex Toys Online

  • A Woman Showing Her Smartphone.

    Disclosing Trans-ness on Dating Apps

  • Image of Emma the AI bot.

    Will Young Women of the Future Feel Pressure to Perform Like Robots?

  • Realistic Sex Games

    Review of the Best Sex Games and Most Realistic Sex Simulators of 2021 [UPDATED]

    0
  • Multiplayer Online Sex Games

    Review of the Best Massively Multiplayer Online Sex Games

    0
  • Sex Games for Mac

    The Best Sex Games for Mac

    0
  • foot-fetish-sex-games-girlvania

    Foot Fetish Games That Will Knock Your Socks Off

    0
  • The Best RPG Sex Games of 2021

    0
Fantasy sex game Dream Sex World lets you explore your wildest desires.
Multiplayer sex world Red Light Center continues to impress with its massive userbase and incredible sex graphics.
A blonde and light-skinned love doll face sppears next to the text Go now realdollxthe future is real.
  • 27KFollowers

Like Us on Facebook

Newsletter Subscription

Sign up for our monthly newsletter sharing the very best of the future of sex from our publication and others across the web.

DreamSexWorld offers a stunning XXX 3D world filled with incredibly interactive erotic experiences.

Like Us On Facebook

Facebook Pagelike Widget

RLC_ad_v2

Tweets by @FutureofSex
Future of Sex Report

Follow us

  • Home
  • About
  • ADVERTISE
  • Contribute
  • Story Ideas
  • Sitemap
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
© 2011 - 2022 Future Exploration Network
This website or its third-party tools use cookies to improve user experience and track affiliate sales. To learn more about why we need to use cookies, please refer to the Privacy Policy.

By clicking the agree button or continuing to browse through the website, you agree to the use of cookies. Accept Privacy Policy
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
SAVE & ACCEPT