CES has long been a launchpad for innovation and cutting-edge technology. However, at this year\u2019s event, there was a conspicuous void: the near-absence of sex tech. Despite being an industry that caters to a universal human experience, sex tech has always had an uneasy association with CES.<\/p>\n
This year, its conspicuous absence begs the question: Why are we still so prudishly resistant to integrating technology and intimacy?<\/p>\n
In 2019, sex tech had its headline moment at CES when pleasure tech company Lora DiCarlo won an innovation award<\/a>\u2014only for it to be rescinded<\/a>, and then reinstated after widespread backlash. (It later\u00a0went out of business<\/a>). This controversy highlighted the uneasy relationship between the mainstream tech industry and its more intimate cousin.<\/p>\n Fast forward to 2024, and it seems CES has effectively managed to chase the sex tech industry off its show floors.<\/p>\n I went looking for sex-tech companies to potentially do a roundup, and there were few enough to recognize only one trend: Not in sex tech, but in the absence thereof. One company stood out: Norwegian company <\/span>Ohdoki<\/a>, the creators of <\/span>The Handy<\/a> and the CES-launched Oh!, were a refreshing presence in the otherwise prudish tech landscape. Their booth was bustling with activity, offering a stark contrast to the largely sex-tech-absent event.<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s unclear whether it\u2019s CES itself that\u2019s trying to reduce the amount of sexiness on its show floors \u2013 the show itself has evolved a lot over the years, and this correspondent thinks it\u2019s a relief to see the so-called \u2018booth babes\u2019 being all but absent: A huge change from my first CES back in 2007 or so, where scantily-clad models were everywhere. But while I celebrate the banishment of sexism \u2013 objectifying humans at booths has no place in 2024 \u2013 sex itself ought to have a place in the vernacular of technology.<\/p>\n It\u2019s puzzling to me why we, as a community, keep erasing sexuality from tech \u2013 when it\u2019s such an universal part of the human experience \u2013 to such an extent.<\/p>\n
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