I’ve spent a chunk from yesterday morning rediscover the big trends of CES 2012. It’s a strange experience to examine so much technology that feels – at the same time – extremely dated and very new. With 10 years between you and an event, the macro trends are really taking shape. Some elements are a clear part of a continuum that leads us into the present. More often than not, however, these things turn out to be some kind of evolutionary impasse.
Still, we can learn a lot at the moment. CES will be billed as the guiding star for the coming year. It also shows how the tech world responds to largely global trends in a one-stop shop. And let’s be honest, there has really been an important global trend over the past few years that will influence what is happening at the fair in every imaginable way.
In the last few weeks we have received some feedback on our reporting on well-known dropouts from the personal part of the event. To some extent, I understand – or at least sympathize – the criticism for focusing reporting on COVID-powered exits rather than the manufacturer news associated with the event. To that I’ll just say we’ll be reporting on it too, but we’ll do it next week when it is actually announced on the show (albeit remotely).
In the run-up to the show, however, we can identify / predict the industry trends that will best define the CES – and maybe even 2022.
First the elephant in the room.
CES outages
As I write this, the list of notable tech companies that have announced that they are opting out (or drastically reducing) in-person events includes the following: GM, Google, Microsoft, AMD, OnePlus, MSI, Lenovo, Intel, T- Mobile, AT&T, Meta, Twitter, Amazon, Proctor & Gamble, Mercedes, BMW, Panasonic, IBM, TikTok and Pinterest. The media site includes TechCrunch, Engadget, The Verge, CNET, PCMag, Tom’s Guide, Tech Radar and more.
It’s not exactly an exhaustive list – but it’s certainly a lot more than the CTA was hoping for. However, a few big names are still taking part, including Samsung, Sony, LG, and Qualcomm. Given the late phase in which many companies are deregistering, visitors to the show can expect a surreal experience full of well-known, unoccupied booths.
CES narrowly dodged the shutdown bullet in 2020. Meanwhile, 2021 felt like a referendum on whether a hardware event of this size could take place entirely virtually. Based on our own experience of navigating the show online, the answer was clearly no. With the CTA planning a return to a face-to-face event in 2022, I’d be interested to see if the organization has dramatically improved the experience for those who won’t be in Vegas.
Networked fitness
The past few years have been enormous for this category – for obvious reasons. Mirror was taken over by Lulu Lemon, Peloton had a banner for a number of years (despite numerous setbacks), and funding went to a number of different home fitness providers. This was fueled by widespread gym closings coupled with the general inactivity of those forced to stay home.
There have been some setbacks for businesses as gyms reopened in different parts of the country and the world, but with the introduction of troubling flavors like Delta and Omicron, many have stayed true to their home workouts.
Bonus: Expect more startups trying out new wearable form factors, including rings, after Oura hit this site. Mindfulness and sleep will also be priorities alongside more traditional health tracking.
robot
As someone who writes a lot about robots, it’s encouraging to see them play an increasingly important role at CES. This also includes going beyond pure novelty and proven form factors such as robotic vacuum cleaners. My list includes exoskeletons, elder tech, agtech, prosthetic limbs, and – at the top – disinfection robots. There will be a TON of it, fueled by an increased focus on surface-based disease transmission during the pandemic and the fact that it’s relatively easy to mount UV-C light panels on an autonomous robot that can make laps of an office.
Bonus: With delivery robots making a big splash on the last mile, you can expect a number of newer companies to join in during the show.
Lidar
Okay, Velodyne has moved away from the in-person event, but between robotics, self-driving cars, and drones (among others) the demand for lidar is huge. Expect a lot of new offers from companies at the fair – both new and old.
Bonus: It will also be a big year for e-bikes. Remember my words
Home work
That’s a bit nebulous, I’ll admit, but the pandemic had a profound impact on the category. After years of decline, PC and tablet sales skyrocketed as people scrambled to build home offices. Even after almost two years of isolation, there is still a lot to improve in our home setups. If you started developing solutions like webcams, lighting, conference equipment, and microphones when the pandemic began, CES 2022 would be a great place to showcase them – for many reasons.
Bonus: For the (much) th consecutive year, smart home stuff will take up a large portion of the attention for the show.
CES 2022 starts next week. We’ll be there (virtually), so stay tuned.
