About this episode
This week, I'm in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the annual Consumer Electronics Show 2026.
If you've been following me for long, you know I do this every year. This is 20-plus years I've been coming to the Consumer Electronics Show. Normally, I don't cover tech and new products here—except for once a year at CES. And it's less about specific companies and what they've announced. You can find that on thousands of channels on YouTube or podcasts. What I like to talk about are the trends—the trends that are emerging—and give you my view and opinion on what they really mean for the innovation space. Are we really innovating, or are we just regurgitating the same thing year after year?
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The Show's Legacy
First, let's recognize that the Consumer Electronics Show is now in its 59th year. It's a spin-off from the old Chicago music show back in the late 1960s. Yes, the late '60s. It's gone through some gyrations over the decades and remains one of the few big shows that survived COVID.
Traditional Consumer Electronics
As usual, one of the big emphases is TVs, displays, home automation, new refrigerators, new washers and dryers—true consumer electronics, things you would find and put into your home. This year was no different. The big manufacturers were here, along with a number of new smaller manufacturers showcasing new TV technologies. Micro LED is the new buzzword bouncing around the show, and there were plenty of displays to see.
I'm a big TV guy, so I definitely had to check that out and see what could be the next TV I put into my house.
The AI and Robotics Takeover
The one thing about thi
