CES2020: What did we learn? by Stephanie Atkinson

1/20/2020

Every year CES® put on by the Consumer Technology Association showcases the next wave of technologies including new gadgets, electronics, computing devices, and a list of emerging products that mesmerize and make waves with roughly 4.5K exhibiting companies. According to their website, "CES is the world’s gathering place for all who thrive on the business of consumer technologies. A high-level business event that touches all industries, it’s the place where business gets done." CES has also evolved, with roughly 175K attendees in 2020 and having previously focused on consumer-only electronics and devices, and now the door has been opened for a host of areas "including 5G connectivity, artificial intelligence, augmented and virtual reality, smart cities, sports, robotics and more." About 3 years or so, they even opened up the show floor to showcase "B2B" or business targeted technologies and solutions. As such, this event encompasses a range of industries including consumer electronics, smart home technologies, communications technology, Internet of Things, Drones, AR/VR technologies, Fleet and asset tracking and monitoring, machine learning, smart cars and autonomous vehicles, robotics technologies, and so much more.

This is my 9th trip to CES in Las Vegas, where I have hosted multiple media lunches and even previous award shows along with speaking on panels and participating in sub-events. This year seems quite a bit more organized not just at the event, but also across Las Vegas. Traffic and congestion was improved, ride sharing services were more responsive, locating events and booths were bit easier to navigate, and the overall event seems to be run very well. I was able to roam around and attend booth meetings in North Hall, South Hall, Westgate but primarily centered around Tech East and Tech South. While I thought the overall mass buzz and excitement this year was overwhelming, there were some big things that happened this year, and sometimes we need to get back to the basics and foundation to essentially leverage technology to improve lives, business, and the overall planet.

Here are a few takeaways based on my trip this year:

Key consumer themes revolved around 5G, "smart" everything, and robotics
Key business or B2B themes revolved around 5G, Edge (devices, analytics, computing), and more relevant solutions specific to an industry
Interesting announcements included Lenovo's foldable PC called Thingpad X1 Fold (Yet Dell and Intel also announced foldable laptops/tablets, along with TCL announcing their foldable phone, new streaming service Quibi, Samsung's rotating TV (Samsung Sero TV), Samsung's 292 inch Wall MicroLED TV, LG's 65-inch rollable TV
Futuristic announcements included Hyundai and Uber Elevate's flying helicopter taxi, Daimler's Mercedes-Benz' Vision AVTR or mind-controlled vehicle, Toyota's Japan "Woven City," and Delta's Parallel Reality Experience
Robotics dominated with announcements by Samsung with their robotic cooking arm, Charmin's bear-faced toilet roll robot, Samsung's Ballie Robot (see CompassIntel IG page for the video), Tombot's emotional-support robot puppy called Jennie, and so many more

Compass Intelligence held many meetings including booth tours and executive discussions. One evening, I attended a Sprint event after a private meeting with Ivo Rook, where they invited a host of business customers and partners. We received an update on many announcements including a redesign/relaunch of IoT Factory (their SMB Online marketplace for IoT bundles and packages), a new partnership with Wirecard to manage IoT transactions, updates to their Peachtree Corners and Greenville partnerships, along with their updates to key initiatives at Arizona State University. Sprint also announced their collaboration with Telstra around joint IoT solutions. We also expect a host of international partnerships to be announced further in 2020 by the Sprint Business team.

Among the many companies we met with, we were able to sit and chat with Geotab (a fleet tracking and management company, with a great number of Government clients), Ericsson, Samsung (to understand the various B2B related products and announcements), and quite a few booth tours by our top clients. Lastly, I was also able to attend Showstoppers (many smaller and startup products and companies) and other client events that were a bit more social. All and all, despite the event being less overwhelming than compared to those in the past, it was a much better experience due to the organization of the event itself and the city...in addition, we continue to embrace the growing list of IoT, business technology, and B2B device solutions being announced and shared at CES. Cheers to a great CES2020!

Key learnings include:

CES continues to embrace and grow the number of companies speaking and exhibiting around B2B or business technology solutions. This is expected to grow! CES is shying away from using the term "Consumer" in its branding.
IoT, AI, and other emerging technologies grow presence on the show floor, along with topics at panels and keynotes.
5G and Edge will dominate in 2020!

Robot Sightings at #CES2020