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
  • 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

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

  • 2023: Innovating Sustainable Infrastructure for Sex Tech

  • Speaking Out: Red Umbrella Podcast Talks Sex Work

  • Sex Tech Predictions in 2023: Challenging Mainstream Supply and Demand

  • Coming to a Crescendo: MysteryVibe’s Crescendo 2 Vibrator Review

  • Sex Tech News: The VDOM places second at Black Ambition Prize, MYHIXEL surpasses crowdfunding target, and Lora DiCarlo shuts down

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 > Women on Top: 10 Female Founders Who Are Revolutionizing Sex Tech

Sex Tech
Home›Sex Tech›Women on Top: 10 Female Founders Who Are Revolutionizing Sex Tech

Women on Top: 10 Female Founders Who Are Revolutionizing Sex Tech

By Jennifer Ho
March 9, 2018
3615
2

It's time to celebrate remarkable ladies in the industry.

Today marks International Women’s Day, a day to recognize the brilliant women around us for their achievements and to celebrate the progress that’s been made in gaining equal rights thus far. And what better way to honor the occasion than featuring the various women in sex tech who are transforming the industry–and by extension, society–for the better.

Stephanie Alys, co-founder of MysteryVibe

Stephanie Alys probably has the best title in the business. She’s the co-founder and Chief Pleasure Officer (CPO) of MysteryVibe, the award-winning British pleasure brand responsible for launching Crescendo, a body-adaptable smart sex toy that can bend and hold its shape.

Alys started her career as a management consultant before launching MyseryVibe in 2014. Now, she’s a leading spokesperson for all thingssex-positivee. Speaking to The Guardian, Alys said: “Women are driving a huge increase in demand for sex toys which are ergonomically designed and beautiful.”

Liz Klinger, co-founder of Lioness

Klinger co-founded Lioness, an intelligent vibrator company, in order to break the taboo around women’s sexual desires. Having grown up in a conservative family, the lack of sexual discussion made Klinger even more curious about sex. Having sold intimacy products at Tupperware-style sales parties, Klinger also quickly learnt there were hardly any acceptable spaces for women to really talk about sexuality and ask questions.

She developed Lioness, a device that uses sensors to measure vaginal temperature and contractions, to help empower women with more knowledge about their sexuality. By pairing the Lioness vibrator to its app, the vibrator’s sensors collect data that can be analyzed to find insights about a  user’s preferences. Users (and their partners) can have a better idea of what stimulations they enjoy most , how long it takes to get aroused, and at what point during a women’s menstrual cycle does sex and masturbation feel best. With more information about their bodies, women are better equipped to experiment and put their desires first.

Tania Boler, co-founder and CEO of Elvie

Boler has championed women’s causes for roughly a decade. In 2008, she began working at Marie Stopes International, a global organization that provides women with reproductive health services. In 2013, she partnered with Alex Asseily to design a wearable product that would improve women’s sexual health and understanding of their bodies.

The result of that collaboration was Elvie, a small pod-like device that connects to a smartphone via Bluetooth and is inserted inside the vagina. Paired with the Elvie app, it measures the strength of pelvic floor exercises and offers personalized training programs that help you monitor progress.

In March 2017, Elvie raised £5 million from Octopus Ventures, with participation from AllBright, the female-focused venture capital fund. The money is being used to launch the product in 25 more regions, grow the team, and launch another femtech product aimed at new mothers.

Véronique Verreault, CEO of Miss On the Go

With a background in management, Véronique Verreault is now in charge of running her own sex tech company. Miss on the Go is both a vibrator and pelvic floor exercise device. When hooked up to an app, it can be controlled by the primary user, a known partner, or a mystery partner via the designated social media app. Users can also follow Kegel exercise routines and keep track of their progress.

After a successful consumer launch at the 2017 SEX Expo in New York, the Canadian company has recently opened sales channels to include other US regions and European markets.

Cindy Gallop, founder of MakeLoveNotPorn

After more than 30 years in advertising, Cindy Gallop decided to apply her considerable talents to the sex tech industry indeed, coining the term itself. In 2009, she launched MakeLoveNotPorn, a website designed to shed light on human sexuality, rather than the more staged world of porn. In 2012 MakeLoveNotPorn.tv was launched. This user-generated video-sharing platform ensured that content creators would be fairly credited and paid for their material.

Despite running on a shoestring budget for the last few years due to a lack of interest from venture capitalists, the social sex website has generated nearly $1 million in revenue and attracted nearly half a million members. Yet exciting things are yet to come. In late 2017, an anonymous investor funded Gallop with a whopping $2 million.

Polly Rodriguez, CEO of Unbound

Polly Rodriguez started Unbound after recovering from colorectal cancer and undergoing radiation treatment that left her menopausal at 21. In an effort to reclaim her sexuality, she had tried buying her first vibrator. However, the experience of walking into an antiquated sex shop left her feeling uneasy. It quickly became clear to Polly that there was a need for intimacy products that were not only built for women by women. They also needed to be sold to them in a sex-positive fashion that knocked out taboos often associated with women’s solo-pleasure

What initially started out as a subscription box, Unbound grew to encompass an e-commerce site as well as an online magazine. The aesthetic is minimalist, with the company promoting the idea that vibrators don’t necessarily have to look like penises.

Rodriguez also started the Women of Sex Tech networking group, set up in response to the barriers she faced when building up her business. Speaking with InHerSight, she explained that she sees “sexual liberation as the last frontier in the feminist movement” –with Unbound just one small step in the process.

Leah Callon-Butler, co-founder Intimate

Leah Callon-Butler is determined to make the adult industry safer by using blockchain technology. Her cryptocurrency, Intimate, is designed as an alternate payment solution for customers, workers, and suppliers in the sex industry. And because it’s built with blockchain, all parties have greater levels of trust, security, and anonymity.

In the past, Callon-Butler has worked with the United Nations Environment Program Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), as well as development programs for young women, and non-profits that help disadvantaged women to achieve economic independence.

She hopes that Intimate can end the financial discrimination that is rampant in the industry. She says: “Individuals transacting in the adult industry services deserve the same financial services that other industries take for granted.”

Stephanie Berman, maker of POP

Stephanie Berman also goes by the nickname of “Spermin’ Berman.” Reason being, she created a unique inseminating device: a strap on dildo that can be used for conceiving with donated sperm.

Berman’s story is the classic case of realizing a gap in the market and doing something about it. To her, the idea of having a doctor inseminate her wife seemed too clinical. And the available home methods, such as the turkey baster or needleless syringe, were uncomfortable. As a result, Berman came up with a device that would allow users to artificially ejaculate.

Originally called the Semanette, it was launched in 2012 under her company name, Berman Innovations. But it still looked like a medical device. So, for the second device launch in 2015, Berman worked with Fun Factory, the high-end German sex toy company.

The device has also found fans among transgendered people, those with erectile dysfunction, as well as those with disabilities.

Bryony Cole, producer of the Future of Sex podcast

Bryony Cole of the Future of Sex Podcast is making waves in sex tech by widening access to the field. Last year she organized the first sex tech hackathon in North America, bringing together developers, experts, and enthusiasts in New York City. This year Cole is hosting the first sextech hackathon in her native Australia.

But this time around she wants to encourage more women-identifying participants at the Sydney event. “Like most technology, sextech is desperately in need of more diversity in voices and output,” she says. “Hackathons are a vital way of sparking critical social conversations, adding diversity of perspective and creating new solutions and dialogue to an emerging industry like sextech.”

Cole’s Future of Sex Podcast also moves beyond the traditional subjects of sex robots and VR—although she does cover them—and pushes the conversation forward to discuss how sexual relationships and sexuality can become more meaningful for various groups.

Wan Tseng, founder of Wisp

Wan Tseng designed Wisp, a collection of sensory wearables to emulate sensations such as light grazes, firm grips and soft air blowing. It’s done through the necklaces and bracelets which can vibrate, release perfume, and grip the user’s skin. A connected app can track the wearer’s reactions and find patterns in levels of arousal.

What started out as a graduate project for her master’s degree at the Royal Academy of Arts/Imperial College in London, the concept is now a fledgling startup.

It’s all about how design can interact with the idea of sex and the elements around it. Speaking to Wareable, Tseng has said: “I can imagine that through women's thinking, the future trends in smart products will focus more on emotional demands and user experience.”

When it comes to sex tech, these women are fighting an upstream battle. A quick look at today’s statistics paint a telling story. According to TechCrunch, only 17% of startups had a female founder in 2017. While figures from Pitchbook found that female founders received a mere 2% of venture capital funding in 2016.

So, today we salute those who are working towards equality—be it the boardroom or the bedroom. May the future of sex be as equal and fair as it should be.

Image sources: Women of Sex Tech, Urbania, UC Berkeley 

Jennifer Ho

Jennifer Ho is a Creative working for Brands2Life, an independent, founder-led, majority employee-owned agency based in London, New York, and San Francisco. She works with strategists, creative thinkers, media experts, public affairs specialists, marketers, digital and social media gurus, storytellers, developers, and content creators.

Her writing career started in 2011 with Get Notorious. She has also worked for 1000 Blend, WhichSocial.com, and Neo Mammalian Studios, Glasswerk, and The Octopus Group. Moreover, she has contributed for Future of Sex in 2018.

Jennifer earned her bachelor’s degree in Arts/ Commerce, Communications, Politics, Finance from Monash University.
Previous Article

Australia’s 1st Sex Tech Hackathon Seeks Women-identified ...

Next Article

The Best Sex Games for Women

Related articles More from author

  • RobotsSex Tech

    Autoblow AI Update: Robot Gives Good Fellatio, Thanks to Machine Learning

    November 24, 2019
    By M. Christian
  • New After Dark section features Indiegogo's sex tech products,
    Sex Tech

    Indiegogo’s After Dark Collection Shines (Some) Light on Adult Products

    September 30, 2016
    By Jon Pressick
  • Sex Tech

    OMGYes Wants to Break the Taboo Around Women’s Pleasure

    February 14, 2017
    By Alice Bonasio
  • Sex Tech

    Is the Call to Investigate Sex Toy Security Actually a Fearmongering Double Standard?

    June 10, 2017
    By M. Christian
  • Remote SexSex Tech

    Stripchat Partners with Psychologist to Crush Anti-Masturbation Shame

    December 2, 2019
    By Marcus K. Dowling
  • Sex Tech

    Retail Platform with a Twist Launches Sex Tech Range

    March 20, 2019
    By Natasha Turner

Leave a reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

  • We may experience sexual pleasure by directly stimulating the brain in the future.
    Augmentation

    Neurostimulation: Future Sex Toys Could Be Brain Implants

  • Dating & RelationshipsVirtual Sex

    Mystic Messenger: Virtual Dating and Toxic Masculinity

  • Image of Hot Ocotopuss digit product on a women's hand
    Sex Tech

    How Sex Tech Designers Can Enhance the Pleasure of Fingering

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

  • 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