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 > Sex Tech > Black Creators Show Leadership in Sex Tech As Big Brands Lag in Diversity

Sex Tech
Home›Sex Tech›Black Creators Show Leadership in Sex Tech As Big Brands Lag in Diversity

Black Creators Show Leadership in Sex Tech As Big Brands Lag in Diversity

By Marcus K. Dowling
July 2, 2020
2348
1

Will the industry embrace Black engineers and product makers now that discussions about inclusivity are at the forefront?

Lidia Bonilla, Misty Stone, SX Noir, Shine Louise Houston, and Ana Foxxx
(Top right, clockwise) Lidia Bonilla, Misty Stone, SX Noir, Shine Louise Houston, and Ana Foxxx

In regards to global popular culture, it can be said that African-Americans have a secure grip on its real-time and digital progression.

However, in the sex industry—especially in the rapidly evolving intersection between sex and tech—Black people’s seat at the table is not equal to their level of pop-cultural influence.

But, in the wake of the global resurgence of the Black Lives Matter Movement, there is evidence of swift-moving development that could yield significant benefits.

In speaking with Women of Sex Tech advisor, pleasure strategist, and entrepreneurial sexpert Lidia Bonilla, Pink and White Productions producer and acclaimed film director Shine Louise Houston, plus observing the actions of brands like Fleshlight [NSFW], positive observations regarding the reparational and future steps for Black people, and sex tech can be made.

Honoring those who came before

Lidia Bonilla

“How Black people engage and survive in white spaces is a topic we keep amongst ourselves, that’s now being brought to the forefront,” says Lidia Bonilla.

Her House of Plume Moi Box (which promises to “fit in a drawer or nightstand, and elegantly hide your vibrator in any décor”) has emerged as an innovative product in the sex toy industry.

One in every 1,000 creators in the sex tech industry are Black.

Thus, the existential and literal survival of Black people and their ideas—especially in a time when an unprecedented global pandemic is coupled with immense racial turmoil—is tantamount.

Bonilla continues with a thought as to her undaunted resolve in the face of unprecedented times.

“I think about the innovators who made space who came before me, whether or not I know their name or contribution, and I’m grateful for their work that’s allowed me to have the ability to attempt to work on an equal playing field,” she says.

“Many activists paid the price, and I maintain their memory with my honesty and ability to dare to exceed expectations.”

Diversity in the marketplace

Shine Louise Houston

Shine Louise Houston

Pink and White’s Shine Louise Houston has similar, yet different thoughts about what happens when expectations related to race are exceeded in a marketplace.

“Diversity in marketplaces allows for new, dynamic relationships to exist between a marketplace once only aware of one standard. Adjusting to a race-driven expansion of expectations is unique,” Houston adds.

“Black creators are making content right now in the sex industry are uniquely showcasing their sexuality. It’s created a symbiotic relationship where makers and consumers are ultimately sharing. It’s not just a maker-to-owner relationship anymore.”

At a clip of well over a half-million penises a year for the past two decades, Fleshlight has established itself as a sex industry leader and innovator in the industry of artificial vaginal and anal masturbators.

However, for half of the company’s time in existence, there was no representation of African-American women in the company’s high-profile “Fleshlight Girls” [NSFW] line of masturbators.

In the past decade, though, stars Ana Foxxx and Misty Stone have had their nether regions molded for the line. How this innovation has restructured expectations of the sex toy and sex tech marketplaces is intriguing to consider.

Brand leadership for Black-positive spaces

Adult performer Ana Foxxx poses next to her branded Fleshlight model.

As of 2016, Fleshlight’s global sales revenues were north of $50 million, yearly, a 1000% jump from 2006. This revenue growth spurred the company’s racial innovation.

The potential for racial change to remain intrinsic to the company’s bottom line is fascinating.

Molds for stars like Foxxx and Stone were able to be used with Fleshlight’s expansion into the teledildonics industry via their partnership with Kiiroo for their (now out of production) digitized Fleshlight Launch product.

Couple this with the fact that Foxxx and Stone had an hour-long, Fleshlight-sponsored Instagram Live conversation regarding the intersection of sex and the BLM movement.

There’s much to think about regarding how Fleshlight could continue to be a leader in the integrational space developing for Blacks in all sex tech realms.

Also, consider as well what Pink and White Productions is creating in the realm of the $6 billion adult entertainment industry. Their ability to uniquely alter a lucrative marketplace to add radical humanism to sex is essential.

Ignored voices push the dialogue forward

Tags and keywords on Pink and White’s pinklabel.tv [NSFW] are an ideal place to find the space where race, tech, innovation, and sex, converge in a mainstream manner. Pink Label’s owner and critically acclaimed director,

Shine Louise Houston notes that many people who traditionally search pornography sites for content ask one question when it comes to her site?

“Why can’t I search for what I want using terms that I’ve known for years?”

She answers that Pink and White have avoided derogatory racial, gender, and sexual language from their keywords and search terms for the hundreds of films chronicling five decades of queer and underground pornography. It’s an audacious move. However, it fits with an era where movements inspiring respect for the humanity of African-Americans and marginalized people worldwide are evolving the future.

Lidia Bonilla adds that Women of Sex Tech, the groundbreaking, half-decade old collective of female sex tech leaders she co-founded, has evolved with the times.

“I’m an advisor now,” she says.

“We’ve made a full embrace of racial inclusivity. Cameron Glover is now our Director of Operations, and SX Noir is our Vice President. We have successfully connected with those who are doing the work and not being appropriately acknowledged. Now they have a seat at the table.”

Bonilla continues with a studied thought about how the sex tech industry, past this Black Lives Matter movement resurgence, evolves.

“Black women, well Black people, are evolved past where we were even a decade ago in tech. We want to change the world now. Remaining focused and forward-looking amid chaos, while also listening to our core market, is happening.”

She continues, “times are catching up to the level of talent that’s available. When “#blacklivesmatter” is a trending hashtag, customers want to know where you stand on the issue. This forces decision-makers at companies or in the marketplace to be open to Black engineers and Black product makers.”

Shine Louise Houston tempers Bonilla’s thoughts with an opinion on how a diverse, thriving marketplace operates with a knowing smile and shrug in her voice.

“Everyone’s so concerned about ‘how is the market going to know what they’re looking for or how to find it?’ It’s simple. The market will be bigger and broader, and less attention will be drawn to difference. People will have to adjust.”

Image sources: SX Noir, Lidia Bonilla, Shine Louise Houston, Fleshlight [NSFW],

Marcus Dowling

Marcus K. Dowling is a kink-friendly journalist, broadcaster, and entrepreneur. In the past ten years, Marcus has written for VICE, Pitchfork, Complex, Red Bull, Bandcamp, Mixmag, ESPN's Undefeated, and has made 300+ podcast appearances.

As a journalist, he's a published author in Superchamp Books’ 2020-released Dating & Sex: The Theory of Mutual Self-Destruction. He’s also an accomplished food critic, having appeared on the second season of the History Channel’s The Food That Built America and Modern Marvels, plus being published in Washingtonian and the Washington City Paper. Plus, as a writer in the fields of race and culture, he’s written for The Bitter Southerner, ESPN’s The Undefeated, Washington Informer, Red Bull’s Amaphiko community service campaign, and is in the top 10% of most-read writers on Medium, notably at their LEVEL vertical.

As a music writer, he’s written for Rolling Stone, Vice, The FADER, DJCity, VIBE, Complex, Bandcamp, The Boot, Nashville Scene, CMT.com, and more. Moreover, he’s been quoted by the Associated Press, ESPN, the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Billboard Magazine, and the Tennessean.
Previous Article

Dating Tomorrow: Why Sex and Relationships After ...

Next Article

Why I’m Thinking of Buying a Sexbot ...

Related articles More from author

  • Mastercard
    Sex TechVirtual Sex & Entertainment

    Mastercard’s Hardline Policy Poses a Risk to the Past and Future of Adult Content

    July 14, 2021
    By Connor Leshner
  • From left to right: Ross Dawson, Bryony Cole, Polly Rodriguez, and Mal Harrison.
    Sex Tech

    Let’s Talk About the Future of Sex, Baby! [Sydney Event]

    March 20, 2018
    By Jenna Owsianik
  • velvet thruster lilac
    Sex Tech

    High-Tech Sex Toys: Origins from Ancient Dildos and Classic Vibrators

    November 18, 2021
    By Future of Sex
  • Screenshot of Universal Basic Income Banner
    Sex Tech

    Affording Pleasure: How Universal Basic Income Will Transform Sex

    February 24, 2021
    By M. Christian
  • AugmentationRemote SexRobotsSex TechVirtual Sex & EntertainmentVirtual SexImmersive Entertainment

    Infographic: The Future of Sex

    November 17, 2016
    By Future of Sex
  • Tech Sex Study
    Dating & RelationshipsSex Tech

    We Research Sex; Let Us Tell You About the Future

    August 24, 2021
    By Lily Moor and Dr. Alexandra James

Leave a reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

  • Remote SexSex Tech

    Sex in the Cloud: Erotic Technology and Internet Computing

  • Remote Sex

    PussyTalk Takes Sexting to Next Level with SMS-controlled Sex Toys

  • The Future of Sex report include 9 fascinating predictions on how sexuality will change in the coming decades.
    AugmentationRemote SexRobotsSex TechVirtual Sex & EntertainmentVirtual SexImmersive Entertainment

    New Report: 9 Incredible Predictions on the Future of Sex

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