From Design Director to Brand Founder: The Journey of William Wei

In 2011, William Wei entered the sex toys industry and soon decided to devote himself entirely to it.

From 2014 to 2017, he served as the design director of IMTOY, a well-known Chinese sex toy brand. During this period, he designed a series of outstanding products that were widely imitated by his peers.

From 2017 to 2020, William took on the roles of product manager and CTO at TRYFUN, a brand owned by the famous Internet company NetEase, and the largest sex toy brand in China. During his tenure, he created several groundbreaking products. Notably, the TRYFUN Black Hole, designed by him, was an instant success upon its release and has maintained its position as the top-selling electric male masturbator in China.

After more than three years at TRYFUN, William Wei decided to establish his own brand, AK. His extensive experience and rising popularity in the Chinese sex toys industry gave him the confidence to venture out on his own.

William believed that a new brand needed a product that could make a significant impact in the industry, both in terms of design and user experience. This belief led to the creation of the Super S1. He emphasized the importance for startups to generate revenue quickly to sustain themselves, develop new products, and build sales channels. He acknowledged the high R&D costs as a major challenge for small companies in the adult products market.

Through extensive observation and testing of many male sex toys on the market, William discovered a key user pain point: most products required both hands to operate, causing inconvenience. Inspired by the popular fascia gun, which had a thin handle and resembled a hairdryer, he envisioned a one-handed use product. He experimented by attaching an ordinary masturbation cup to a fascia gun and then developed a new product modeled after this shape. However, he knew that innovation in appearance alone was not enough; the product experience had to be exceptional. He studied many high-quality masturbation cups and aimed to make the Super S1 the best electric masturbation cup in the world.

For a small company with limited cash flow, developing a new product posed a huge financial risk. William’s innovation was unprecedented in the industry, and its success was uncertain. He recalled, “During that time, I couldn’t sleep and experienced various endocrine disorders. I spent 18 months on research and development, invested hundreds of thousands of dollars, and went through five prototype versions and multiple mold adjustments, which placed significant financial pressure on the company and affected my health.”

Fortunately, William’s investment paid off. The Super S1 became the first automatic masturbator with a handle on the market, quickly becoming one of the most popular male toys. Many companies have since tried to imitate its design, but none have matched the user experience of the Super S1. William believes that without genuine thought and experimentation, it is impossible to grasp the essence of product design and create products that truly resonate with users.

AK Brand Vision: Adhere to the “de-eroticization” differentiation strategy of sex toys, inspire people to explore and choose a fun lifestyle with elegant and high-end product styles, and make sex toys a cool and fun experience.

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