Samsung was among the consumer electronics giants incorporating AI into their products to make smart TVs even smarter. (Media Play News staff photo)
CES 2024 Opens in Las Vegas With Traditional ‘Wow’ Factor and AI Everything
January 9, 2024
LAS VEGAS — CES 2024 officially opened Jan. 9 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, and early indications are that the show is back to its pre-pandemic size and scope.
The concourse was packed an hour before the show floor opened at 10 a.m., and walking through Central Hall that morning was a lot like moving through Times Square on a Friday night — except there was even more neon and flash.
Big consumer electronics mainstays such as Sony, Panasonic and Samsung battled it out with relative newcomers such as Hisense and TCL for the vaunted show floor “wow” factor, with the former touting its AI-enabled line of massive television sets and the latter capitalizing on its NFL partnership by bringing in such football legends as Bo Jackson and Brian Bosworth to sign autographs and snap photos with guests.
As expected, the big buzz this year is around AI — not so much to replace the human touch but to embellish it.
The Consumer Technology Association, which produces CES, said there are more than 4,000 exhibitors and expects more than 130,000 attendees, a significant jump from last year. Exhibitors this year, according to the CTA, including a record number of startups in Eureka Park, a dedicated area for breakthrough technology.
“At CES 2024, we’re thrilled to bring together exhibitors, attendees and media to display and dream up the technology of tomorrow, and the innovations that are solving today’s greatest challenges,” said Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the CTA. “CES is where business and policy converge.”
During the CTA’s State of the Industry Address on the morning of Jan. 9, Shapiro recognized the 100th anniversary of CTA and underscored the importance of technology that can enhance human capabilities to address issues such as access to clean air and water, food, healthcare, and technology.
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CES Media Days on Jan. 7 and 8 at Mandalay Bay featured 23 press conferences, including presentations by Hyundai, Hisense and the UHD Alliance. CES Unveiled Las Vegas, a preview of the products launching at CES 2024, featured technology from 180 companies ranging from Palmplug’s Theraplay virtual reality game, which helps rehabilitate stroke patients, to Xpeng AEROHT’s flying car.
“Unveiled Las Vegas is such a great way to kick off CES each year and to get a sneak peek into some of the early trends at the show, and it was no surprise to see AI everywhere amid diverse offerings across accessibility, digital health, food tech, mobility and smart home,” said Kinsey Fabrizio, CTA’s SVP of CES and membership.
CTA’s director of thematic programs, Brian Comiskey, and director of research, Jessica Boothe, presented 2024’s Top Tech Trends to Watch. This year’s presentations showcased how AI, sustainability and inclusive tech design will advance tomorrow’s technologies such as mobility, digital health, content, gaming and agrifood tech. Underpinning these trends and evolution in the industry is the rise of Gen Z as a sizable and influential segment, especially in emerging market nations where they’re rapidly connecting to the internet to shape worldwide trends. In turn, innovation in both the consumer and the enterprise will advance to a more intelligent, greener, and more inclusive tomorrow.
In addition to more than 250 conference sessions and the Innovation Policy Summit for global policymakers, CTA on Jan. 9 launched the Consumer Technology Circularity Initiative (CTCI), a voluntary industry initiative to reduce waste, encourage more reuse, enhance recycling, reduce climate impact, and see less disposal of consumer electronics. Founding partners include Lenovo, LG Electronics, Panasonic, Samsung and Sony Electronics Inc.