Sex & Web3 | The potential of digital ownership for sexual wellness biz

Yesterday, I started a new adventure: I joined Parity Technologies and thus began my foray into Web 3.0. Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time, there was a young MBA student on a trip to Silicon Valley. After a few days in California, the gloss and shimmer of the tech hub had worn off —the whole ethos felt like a scam. I was sitting at Plug and Play listening to pitches when a young woman began to talk about using blockchain for something or other. I looked at my friend Dima, a mathematical computer wiz, and asked, "Can you do this?" He smirked, "What are you scheming?"

For me blockchain had potential for creating visibility, and thus accountability, for suppliers in the sexual supply chain. I had no idea why, but I was eager to learn. But after moving to Berlin to work for a blockchain company called Advanced Blockchain, my excitement soured.

HOWEVER, my friend and new manager Katy reignited the flame. We've spent countless hours thinking about the intersection of sexuality and NFTs (Non-fungible tokens). So here is what I hope to explore as I juggle sexuality research and web3 explorations:

1. How can DAOs be used to make sex work more safe for sex workers?

A DAO, or decentralized autonomous organizations, is a means to organize people and their interests on the interwebs using the blockchain. The potential here is that you can set up an agreed upon group of rules that governs people's behavior that's enforced without a central actor or governance body. What if we build DAOs with both the sex workers interests and the sexual consumers interests in mind? Couldn't we build a safer ecosystem?

2. How can we use the blockchain to make the sex product supply chain more sustainable?

One perk of using blockchain is traceability: because the ledger records transactions or movements permanently you get a clear picture of how money or goods have changed hands as well as the original value of such assets. Could using this technology help us improve sex toy production and logistics? Could we build secondary markets for products used by our favorite performers? Could we ensure that our materials and services were ethically sourced from suppliers and manufactures with good labor practices?

3. How can NFTs free sex content creators from the claws of unethical pornography producers and create ownership of their image as it moves through the universe?

Whether you're a casual sex content creator or a full-time star, your image is not your own. Tube sites are constantly scraping the internet to collect videos that you worked hard to make and not giving you any of the money you're owed. By minting porn NFTs, could creators track, own, and monetize their work no matter how many screens it moves through?

I don't have the answers yet, but I hope by taking on this additional role I can pave the way for a healthier sexual future. As my learning deepens, I'll put out actual tutorials and thought-pieces so we can all learn together.