Invisible champions made in Guangdong: sex dolls feel the same as real people

In this area of ​​”ashamed to talk openly”, a small factory in Zhongshan runs the country’s cattle ears; and under the wave of artificial intelligence, AI dolls developed by the factory have gradually entered the fields of elderly care and home intelligence

In Zhongshan, Guangdong, the mottled signboards of Shishan Industrial Zone are hidden in the shade. In the quiet and old factory building of Jinsan Props, Liu Jiangxia is introducing the production process of artificial dolls on the assembly line to customers. This is her normal working condition-before 10:30 in the morning, she has already received the third client who came to discuss cooperation, and was too busy to take a sip of water.

At the same time that Liu Jiangxia had finalized a cooperation, a “body” covered with a transparent plastic bag was transported out of the warehouse, and packed into a huge box together with the “head”, wig and clothing that had been carefully dressed. Send to home and abroad.

In the field of fiercely competitive simulation humanoid model manufacturing, this small factory in Zhongshan has firmly occupied the top spot in the national mid- to high-end simulation doll sales market, and has a pivotal position in the country and even the world.

Liu Jiangxia’s eyes don’t stop there. The wave of artificial intelligence has just begun, she led the technical team to create AI simulation dolls that can move, and became the “first crab eating” manufacturer; these AI dolls are now gradually entering the elderly care, home intelligence, etc. Field, “Backed by Guangdong’s good manufacturing foundation, we hope to explore some different possibilities in the application scenario of humanoid simulation.”

Amazing: These sex dolls feel just like real people

After pouring the body of the humanoid model of several tens of pounds out of the mold, the female worker Xiao Wang picked it up and moved it to the workbench. She cut off the protruding mold lines on both sides of the “body” with scissors, and ironed each with a soldering iron. A flaw. She then took the “body” to the washing area, cleaned it with a shower gel, wiped it dry, applied talcum powder, and moved to the semi-finished area-a series of tasks that took a long time, even four years The little king with experience and sloppy hands and feet can only handle one in the morning, “up to half more.”

In the semi-finished area on the third floor, women workers Wu Yongmei lined up foundation, blush, and eye shadow in front of her. Her job was to paint the model’s face with appropriate makeup. On the invisible spherical colloid, Wu Yongmei filled cotton and plastic eyeballs into the openings of the eyes, put on false eyelashes, and then painted the shape of the eyebrows with a brush. It takes 40 minutes to an hour to process the makeup of a head.

Bathing, wiping, applying makeup, nails, and hair, every step is as careful as taking care of a real person. In order to meet the personality requirements of more people, the factory provides 7 skin tones, more than 260 face shapes and 11 body shapes. Customers can freely combine according to their preferences. Details include pupil color, nail color, facial makeup, etc. .

The Yangcheng Evening News reporter observed from close observation that the surface of these simulated solid dolls simulated the texture of the skin with sandpaper, regardless of size, structure, and appearance. What’s even more amazing is that the upgraded version of the doll even has heating wires buried to ensure that it maintains a body temperature of approximately 37 degrees, and has the softness, elasticity and visual sense of real human skin.

The appearance of such exquisite dolls is purely a “mishit” of the Liu Jiangxia couple.

More than ten years ago, when the Liu Jiangxia couple came to Guangdong to start a business from Sichuan, they were still in the same industry—manufacturing clothing mannequins. At that time, the increasingly prosperous clothing brand and underwear design market gave birth to new demand, and Liu Jiangxia saw an opportunity for development: fully simulated mannequins had a market. The couple repeatedly debugged various material ratios, and gradually worked out materials that make the touch more similar to real skin. At that time, many friends suggested that it was a pity to use this process only on clothes models. So, Liu Jiangxia and his wife began to explore the production of high-end simulation dolls.

“In the past few years, we have continued to explore, and the light materials have undergone five upgrades.” Liu Jiangxia has no pride in the current products. From the initial hard feel to the soft and delicate, these dolls are constantly optimized in the details. Process, “The mold opening, skeleton, and tools are all independently developed by us. At present, we have obtained one invention patent and six utility model patents.”

Made in Guangdong: sales volume ranks first in the high-end market

“Yes, there are more than 260 head types to choose from. Yes, eye color, makeup, hairstyle, and body shape can be personalized according to the template. No, no, using real portraits is infringing.” Being a customer service at the Liu Jiangxia factory In the second year, Jing Chaohai has been able to cope with the endless problems of customers. On the e-commerce platform, customers asked him for physical dolls after ordering, and the number of physical dolls could reach 200 a month, ranging from 5,000 yuan to 12,000 yuan each.

In Jing Chaohai’s impression, after all, sex dolls are still “adult products”. This is a niche area that is ashamed to talk openly-he has two micro-signals that strictly separate work and life. ” I don’t find it easy to explain to others what I’m doing. “

Liu Jiangxia told the Yangcheng Evening News reporter that the factory produces about 2,000 personalized dolls each month, and more than 70% are sold abroad, with less than 30% of domestic orders. “But in the domestic high-end simulation entity dolls, our market share is The largest of its kind. “

The popularity of “No. 85” may show the influence of Liu Jiangxia’s brand in the circle from one side.

The birth of the explosion comes from an accidental suggestion from the customer service girl: The clothes shot on the Internet in the online store are very popular. Should we also make a look at the market response? After researching hundreds of net red faces, the designer designed the “No. 85”, which was launched last year and it was really hot.

In the lively discussions of various doll bars and word of mouth from users, “No. 85” has become the leading Internet celebrity in the sex doll industry, and it has also become a synonym for the Golden Three Dolls.

In 2017, a report from Jingdong BD Research Institute showed that from the second half of 2014 to the first half of 2017, the scale of Chinese sex toys reached 1.78 times to 2.25 times of family planning supplies. According to this calculation, the size of China’s adult products market will be about 9 billion US dollars in 2020. According to media reports, according to 2017 data, as the leading region for adult products in China, the sales volume in Guangdong is nearly twice that of Beijing, the second largest.

In Liu Jiangxia’s view, as one of the high-end fields, the market for simulation dolls is also expanding year by year. This is a new opportunity brought by the development of e-commerce and the Internet + entrepreneurial wave. Publicly available information shows that in 2015 alone, more than 13 startups in the sex industry received more than RMB 700 million in financing.

“At present, 90% of our domestic orders are sold online, and nearly 100 dolls are sent from here every day.” Liu Jiangxia believes that with the further elimination of the stereotyped prejudices of domestic dolls, the industry will face greater challenges Development opportunities.

New market trends: from physical dolls to AI dolls

“Lucy, I think you’re stupid.”

“I’m looking for you just because I’m stupid. What are you looking for?”

Mouth, eyes, and eyebrows move, and they can intelligently respond to daily “teasing.” The physical doll that combines beauty and artificial intelligence has become a star product in the field of simulation dolls.

With the rise of the concept of artificial intelligence in recent years, Liu Jiangxia keenly felt the wind direction, “There are some robots on the market, artificial intelligence technology is very good, but the shape is not really humanoid. We have advantages in humanization, can we use technology Organically combined with shape? “

In 2016, she invested in research and development of AI dolls, and officially launched to the market in April 2017, becoming the earliest “water tester”-although each price is at least about 10,000 yuan, there are still many customers Ask and send the order.

The reporter saw at the scene that Lucy can achieve blinking, smiling, eyebrow ups and downs, and various body posture adjustments. She can also communicate with the outside world through the intelligent voice system. Because of the search database embedded in the program, “She” can also Query all kinds of information in real time, including the day’s news, weather, etc.

“This is not only a passive toy, but also a vivid companion, with interactive feedback and spiritual companionship.” Liu Jiangxia admitted that Lucy is still not mature enough in technology, such as slow response and inaccurate recognition. The new generation of AI entity dolls is in the process of development. “We have reconfigured the voice system to control facial expressions more precisely. If the machine parts can be mass-produced, the production cost will be greatly reduced.”

The market targeted by Liu Jiangxia is not limited to the current physical doll market. In her schedule, AI dolls for elderly care are already being negotiated. She plans to add a medical care module to the program to implement basic functions such as pulse measurement, heartbeat measurement, and emergency calls. On the other hand, home intelligent AI dolls are also being planned. “Such as awakening the air conditioner, turning on the TV, and closing the curtains, this technology is relatively easy to do. Smart dolls are an important direction for our future research and development.”

Simulation doll robots may also become a new trend in the market. The reporter learned that the entity doll brand EXDOLL also launched AI dolls, and even provided medical care services outside of chat. Wu Xingliang, the company’s sales director, said that the ultimate goal of the product is to take care of the disabled and the role of silver hair care company.

“China is entering an aging society, and people’s demand for artificial intelligence robots will increase.” Wang Shaofang, CEO of Shenzhen Full Intelligent Robot Technology Co., Ltd. is optimistic about such application prospects. It is reported that they have signed investment agreements with relevant departments to produce robots with teaching functions, display functions and care functions.