Founder of the Week: Loes Jaber and Nuditae

Imagine a platform where sex isn’t taboo, but where the beauty of sex is celebrated. Imagine a platform where sexual pleasure isn’t shamed, but normalized, regardless of one’s sexual preferences or gender identity.

Dream no further. That’s exactly what Loes Jaber is building, a social media platform for sexual content, named NUDITAE. “It’s a safe space for sexual education, exploration & expression’, as Loes puts it: ‘A space to feed one’s sexual curiosity.”

Until 2018, Tumblr was the community-focused space for adult content. It was a home to everyone who didn’t ‘fit in’ to what was deemed standard by the porn industry. Years of shared blogs, GIFs, videos, pictures, and porn, from sexologists sharing their wisdom to trans persons sharing their transition, and from One Direction lovers sharing GIFs to porn containing every imaginable kink. It all came to an end when Tumblr banned adult content in December 2018, leaving millions without a space to share sexual content.

“I figured someone with a few million on their bank account would jump into the space and build something similar or better, but that didn’t happen,” says Loes. She decided to roll up her sleeves and build it herself.

After she got her law degree, she spent over 5 years working at the IND, the Dutch immigration office, working on asylum requests in different departments of the organization. She also spent time in Greece, assisting the authorities with the influx of refugees. Loes had to cope with burnout that arrived alongside a diagnosis of ADHD at the age of 30.

“Sometimes I work from 9 to 5, sometimes I work from 5 to midnight and sometimes I don’t do anything at all. The creative flow always comes. It just doesn’t come forced, so I needed that freedom.”   

About Nuditae

Loes’ manager wasn’t thrilled with the idea of one of its employees building a sex tech startup alongside her work. She had a choice to make: she’d either continue working at the IND with all the safety that comes with a permanent contract or she’d quit and build Nuditae. For Loes, there was no doubt: she quit her job. “I still feel that sense of freedom every single day, despite the unsteady income that comes with building a startup.”   

Similar to other social media platforms, one can create an account on Nuditae. One can choose a user account or a creator account. As a user, you’ll be able to view, save content and follow your favorite creators. As a creator, you have all those rights, but you’ll also be able to share (sexual) content.    

Nuditae is for content creators and consumers of all sexual and gender identities, shapes, forms, and colors. The platform allows for content in every shape or style, which creators can showcase in their gallery. That gallery is adjustable to the likes and styles of the creator.     

“In my mind, Nuditae is an infinite space filled with thousands of galleries of different people expressing their sexuality in a way that feels real to them,” Loes says. “By fostering sexual expression, we not only normalize sexuality, but we also (re)learn to understand, accept and love our sexual, naked selves,”    

The company takes the safety of its users very seriously and adheres to a strict zero-tolerance policy. “We verify the identity of our content creators, to prevent illegal and harmful content,” Loes says, “We are ready for the responsibility that comes with a platform like Nuditae. The safety and privacy of our users are our first, second, and third priority, uncompromisingly so.”   

What makes Nuditae different?

Different from other platforms, Loes explains that the feed will be based on a mix of algorithms. You won’t only see what you are already following, but there will be algorithms providing you with broader content, teaching you about different sexualities. “By doing so we want to reverse what’s being done right now. We want to broaden people’s minds rather than keep them narrow. You can then, of course, still choose what you wish to see and what not.”   

While listening to Loes, inevitably a question arises: what distinguishes Nuditae from an already existing platform like OnlyFans? “OnlyFans is for an individual process, it’s about instant sexual gratification rather than sexual wellness,” she replies. “There’s nothing wrong with wanting instant sexual gratification, but from the research that we’ve done, it’s clear that many people are looking for a community-focused platform that has a more comprehensive approach towards sex and sexuality. That’s who Nuditae is for.”    

Additionally, Nuditae aims to build and bring together a community of people that don’t have an online space to share their sexuality, as most existing sexual content-sharing platforms are catered solely towards men and the male gaze. “Male sexuality and sexual pleasure are deemed normal and acceptable, whereas female, queer, and specifically trans sexuality and sexual pleasure are still taboo and judged.” Loes says.

“We are breaking through those barriers. Sexual pleasure should be normalized for everyone, regardless of one’s sexual or gender identity.”   

The future of Nuditae

The option to monetize content will be implemented on the platform, the founder says. “We want to implement a system that helps us maintain a healthy company and we want to do so in agreement and collaboration with our content creators. The needs of sexual content creators are often ignored. We want to include them and make them part of Nuditae.”   

Nuditae is currently live in beta. This test version is free of charge. In the future users & creators will pay a small monthly fee to make use of the platform. The reason? To avoid having to use user data to make money, as the well-known, most-used social media platforms do. “Nuditae doesn’t collect data, because one’s sexuality is private. It’s as simple as that. But we do have a team to pay and a platform to maintain, and so we felt this was the fairest way to set up the platform.”   

The founder dreams big for Nuditae. “I hope that one day we’ll also have offline events, in different places around the world. I’d love for there to be a panel on sexual pleasure in New York and a Q&A about vaginismus in Amsterdam. We must learn to talk about these things, and I hope Nuditae does its part in that process.”   

Like every path, it doesn’t come without obstacles

Though launching a startup is rarely a walk in the park, that’s even less so when it comes to sex tech startups. The obstacles encountered by Loes are numerous, starting from banks and insurance companies, but also companies like PayPal, who refuse to work with her.    

Advertising on social media platforms is also a no-go. Even posting on social media is a risk. “I am waiting every single day to have my account taken down on Instagram. It happened before and I had to start over. I’m assuming it will happen again, but that’s also why I’m building Nuditae.”    

As for every start-up money is an issue. “Because we’re a sex tech startup it’s more complex. Most accelerators, incubators, and VCs don’t want to work with us. People don’t want to have their names tied to it. They’re afraid of the stigma and the risks, but the thing is, we need money to build this so we can reduce that stigma and prevent those risks.” But the founder is hopeful, “I’m sure there are angels out there interested in investing in this space. It’s just a matter of finding them.”    

She keeps going

Despite the obstacles along the way, Loes still wakes up every single morning, satisfied with the choice she made. “It’s hard because I don’t have a monthly income like I used to, but I felt stuck in a golden cage. Today I allow myself the freedom to work when my brain permits it. I am way more efficient and effective than when I forced myself to wake up at 8 and be behind the laptop at 8.15. And I’ve learned that there’s a whole world outside having a job. The startup world is such an exciting and fast-moving place and I’m made for it.” concludes Loes.     

If you are interested in learning more about Nuditae, go to nuditae.com. You can sign up for the beta version for free. Your input will help the Nuditae team make the platform exactly what it should be.    

If you are or know any investors interested in investing in sex tech and specifically Nuditae, don’t hesitate to get in touch with Loes.    

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