Can you believe it? The Consumer Electronics Show, aka CES, is just days away. I know, the timing is hard for all of us considering there hasn’t been much time to recover from our New Years festivities. No rest for the weary as we head out to Vegas for the big event.
The show is always full of surprises, so stay tuned next week for lots of announcements to hit the wire. In the meantime, I have a few thoughts to share on what I will be looking for at the show.
A Wide Breadth of Technology
CES will have a wide breadth of technology on display. Networking tech is my sweet spot, but I think of myself as a complex man, a bit diversified when it comes to technology. I am sure I will be fully distracted by all the cool, nerd-worthy tech on display.
So, let’s talk a bit about it and save the networking deep dive for another time. Let’s get to it-
GPU Announcements
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang will kick things off with a keynote where I expect announcements around their next-gen GPU’s (GeForce RTX 50 series) and of course the subsequent related announcements from Nvidia’s PC partners.
Not to be outdone, look for AMD to give us our first look at its new RDNA 4 GPU. I see the CES event as the year’s landmark event for GPU announcements, with the following months giving us trickle down use cases and products.
Nvidia and AMD, all GPU hungry eyes will be on you!
Connected Cars
Connected cars will have a lot to show off at the event this year. In particular I am most excited to see firsthand Hyundai’s full windshield holographic display. I am anxious to hear how the added distraction of augmented reality will make driving safer than the old-fashioned strategy of see-and-avoid.
No new automotive technology comes to fruition without strong partners, so look for LG and Qualcomm to make a few announcements in this arena. If you have not noticed, the Qualcomm Snapdragon is quietly taking over all of your car’s functions.
You can thank them for your in-vehicle experience and active safety technology. If you want to see where your car is going keep an eye on Qualcomm.
Huawei’s Presence
Despite their geopolitical challenges, Huawei will have a booth at the show. The company’s telecom Infrastructure is banned in the US (and many European countries) but, despite their limited availability, their consumer items are not.
The Huawei portfolio extends well beyond banned mobile phone infrastructure technology. Phones, laptops, wearables, etc. are all Huawei products looking to penetrate the US market. Brand visibility is important and given the fact that CES is a global show attracting companies from Huawei friendly countries, look for Huawei to have a strong showing at CES this year.
Agentic AI
Getting a bit more technical- If you are unfamiliar with the term Agentic AI you need to get to know the term as part of your New Years resolution. The concept is picking up traction (check out what MS CEO has to say about it) and I expect many vendors at CES to present their capabilities. This one will not be difficult to find as it isn’t specific to any particular segment of the show.
Agentic AI will penetrate practically all areas of consumer technologies, and enterprise IT. As we saw at nearly all technology conferences in 2024, every square foot of the show floor will have some sort of AI on display. Perhaps this is the year we see value driven use cases. Come on CES exhibitors, we are counting on you!
Connectivity
Finally, connectivity. Rarely is technology run in isolation. Nearly all tech requires some sort of connectivity, and we are in exciting times when it comes to how we supply and manage these connections. Terrestrial connectivity is being challenged by 5G via satellite (it feels like we are still entering the space age!) and low bandwidth connected devices are increasing by orders of magnitude.
The end use technology is great but none of it works well without this backend connectivity and management. A lot of innovating is happening with connectivity companies, and I will be making some time to visit with startups looking to revolutionize cellular management, IoT connectivity, and AI driven security models. Copper, fiber, 5G, Private 5G, satellite, it will all be at the show and I can hardly wait to dig into it all.
Wrapping Up
Oof, I found myself going a bit too deep into the tech stack so early in the year. I think I’ll stop here before things get messy.
CES will once again be a mega display of highly connected living, and that is what makes the show so much fun. We get to see crazy technology that is available today, and really crazy technology that doesn’t stand a chance.
From large TV’s that will never fit into my living room to robots that make me feel uncomfortable, I will be soaking it all in while quietly looking for the nuggets of golden networking technology.
Hope to see you all there!
