Can Crave’s smart design help reduce stigma around self-pleasure? We hope so

Like most great conversations about sex, my conversation with Ti Chang was frank, personal, and over wine.

Chang is co-founder of Crave, a startup that makes beautifully designed sex toys and accessories for women. I first met her at her studio office in the SOMA neighborhood of San Francisco, a rapidly gentrifying area that is now a very on-theme patchwork of tech startups and leather bars. As she shows me around her studio, I immediately notice that Chang is not your average tech personality. Instead of spouting vague corporate messaging, Chang is genuinely interested in the details of manufacturing. She excitedly shows me around the various instruments for making prototypes in-house, from multiple 3D printers to a special tray designed to test the battery life of dozens of vibrators at a time. Among the chaos of equipment and moodboards are the products themselves. Minimalist and elegant, I forget for a moment that they’re sex toys.