CES 2025 suggestions and tips: A information to tech’s greatest commerce present

CES 2025 is coming to Las Vegas throughout the week of January 5, and it is going to be one of many greatest tech expos on the earth once more.

This 12 months’s present must be massive once more. Final 12 months’s attendance reached 138,789, in keeping with an audited report by the Shopper Know-how Affiliation (CTA), the group that places on the present.

Final 12 months at CES 2024, I recorded round 80 press occasions, interviews, and classes. I walked 46.78 miles, or 105,407 steps, over six days. My ft harm and my again have been sore. There have been greater than 4,300 exhibitors and a pair of.4 million sq. ft of exhibit area to crawl. And the Goodyear blimp was there.

I’ve been attending the Shopper Electronics Present because the Nineties when then-Microsoft CEO Invoice Gates gave the opening keynote speeches yearly. This time, the most important speech will come from Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, the graphics chip maker that has grow to be the king of AI {hardware} with a market worth of $3.42 trillion — probably the most useful firm on the earth.

He’ll give a chat at 6:30 p.m. Pacific time on the Michelob Enviornment on the Mandalay Bay on January 6. Most attendees arrive on the present on January 7 and keep via January 10, when the expos are open. However the press — a number of thousand of us — begin arriving on January 5 for the afternoon previews and CES Unveiled (press solely, in Mandalay Bay), the place award-winning exhibitors present their wares at tables.

“The CES is an incredible, highly effective tech occasion. I used to be wanting again at what you had written final 12 months about it, earlier than and after,” stated Gary Shapiro, CEO of the Shopper Know-how Affiliation, in an interview with GamesBeat. “Lots of people go together with a really full agenda, however we all the time say you must have time for serendipity and discovery. We’ve a brand new look, a brand new really feel. We targeted the marketing campaign on “Dive in.” We’re inviting attendees to do three issues: join, resolve, and uncover.”

He stated the typical attendee has about 29 conferences throughout the present, as face-to-face enterprise continues to be necessary. About 75% of attendees say their enterprise is primarily B2B, or each B2B and B2C.

My No. 1 tip is to all the time put on snug sneakers. I realized that lesson after some blisters throughout a CES years in the past. As for a masks, I put on it on planes and sometimes throughout massive, crowded indoor occasions. However issues have modified because the COVID days when the present was canceled outright in January 2021 and severely restricted in January 2022, with solely 45,000 displaying up.

A lot of my recommendation will not be rocket science. However I renew this story yearly since there are new folks attending the present and lots of going again for the primary time. I take no duty for unhealthy recommendation. You’ll be able to take a look at the CES app right here.

Attendance will not be fairly the place it as soon as was. Again in 2019, the present drew 175,212 in 2019 and 171,268 in 2020. CES 2020 had about 4,500 exhibitors throughout 2.9 million sq. ft of area. This 12 months, the present is at the least a number of days after New Yr’s and that offers some respiration room for these planning on going.

Must you go?

It’s a giant present, and, not like the gaming {industry}’s canceled E3 present, it’s nonetheless related. Final 12 months, there have been 5,355 media final 12 months, up from 4,800 media attending CES 2023, up from 3,100 media at CES 2022. Eureka Park on the Venetian’s Sands Expo had greater than 1,400 startups.

There have been 46,000 worldwide guests, or 40.6% of the entire, final 12 months. Some 5,975 have been from the Americas outdoors the U.S., 12,424 have been from Europe, 36,017 have been from the Center East and Asia, 229 have been from Africa and 552 have been from Oceania. About 15,723 have been presidents or founders, or 11.7% of general attendance, and one other 12,768, or 9.5%, have been C-suite executives.

Final 12 months’s prime areas of curiosity have been AI, car tech, IoT sensors, smarthomes and home equipment, AR/XR/VR, robotics, advertising and promoting, startups, video applied sciences, 5G, vitality/energy, cloud computing/knowledge and health/wearables.

The 12 months earlier than, the highest areas of curiosity have been AI, IoT/sensors, car expertise, AR/VR/XR, smarthomes and home equipment, 5G, robotics, startups, vitality/energy, health and wearables and advertising and promoting.

I nonetheless view CES as a bellwether for the tech economic system, as no different occasion spans the complete tech world prefer it does. Firms need to create a buzz at CES, which is designed to sign merchandise coming within the subsequent 12 months. I discover the present a helpful strategy to keep on top of things on the newest expertise. Should you discover the well being threat acceptable, then it could nonetheless be a useful strategy to keep in contact.

Apple doesn’t attend the present, however nearly each different tech large does. It’s the place the tech {industry} might be subsequent week, although it’s not a lot of a recreation occasion as of late. Sony, nonetheless, might be displaying up and they’re anticipated to point out off the Afeela electrical automobile (created with Honda) full with a PlayStation 5 within the car on the present.

Since 2020, CES official exhibit venues have been geared up with improved air flow methods and recent air circulation. 

The Las Vegas Conference Heart, Mandalay Bay and the Venetian Expo have been awarded World Biorisk Advisory Council (GBAC) Star certification by ISSA. This accreditation means the properties are observing cleansing protocols and work practices that reduce dangers related to the unfold of infectious illnesses. 

Once more in 2025, CES will work to reduce floor contact factors and enhance recent airflow at high-traffic areas. 

Hand sanitization stations might be positioned all through CES venues.  Pack heat as Vegas in January is a median of 57 levels.

Masks can be found onsite. Should you select to not put on one, please respect these round you who do, the CTA says.

Getting your badge and entering into the present

It’s a must to work within the tech {industry} to get into the present. It’s a spot for professionals, not vacationers, and registration is designed to display screen the vacationers out. With 140,000 or extra folks on the present, you don’t need to get caught in lengthy traces.

All present attendees, together with media and particular person exhibitor personnel should choose up their very own CES 2025 official badge at a distant badge pickup location You can not choose up badges for different attendees. I often choose mine up on the Las Vegas airport.

To select up your badge at a distant badge choose up location, you should current the next: Authorities-issued picture ID and a registration affirmation – both saved in your Google or Apple pockets or affirmation e-mail with QR code to scan.

Safety

The CTA stated its safety measures imply attendees will face a bag search on the entrance to all present venues.

A singular e-mail deal with is required for every registrant. CES badges embrace a photograph ID for attendees, exhibitors and media.

Date of start will once more be required according to steerage from federal legislation enforcement and {industry} greatest practices.

At CES 2025, the CTA stated you’ll discover a extremely seen legislation enforcement presence all through the present and in any respect venues. Regulation enforcement officers and K9 (canine) items might be at each the entrances to the venues and on the exhibit ground. The venues might be performing random safety checks on present premises.

As an enhanced safety measure, the CTA is are implementing a car deterrence plan in and round key venues.

Should you see one thing suspicious, please report it to CES through the safety telephone numbers printed on the again of your CES badge. Venue safety numbers might also be discovered on the On-Website Companies web page. It’s also possible to ask any CES employees member or venue or safety personnel. It’s possible you’ll contact CES Safety or venue safety via the CES App within the Safety part.

Attendees could carry two small baggage, every smaller than 12”x17”x6” into present venues. Attendees are inspired to contemplate their bag sort and use clear baggage (mesh, plastic, vinyl, and many others.) to expedite entry.

Rolling baggage of any measurement are prohibited together with baggage, carry-ons, laptop computer and laptop baggage, and rolling baggage carts.

Media with an official media badge are permitted to hand-carry gear onto present premises in extra of the two-bag restriction. Tools is topic to look and tagged as permitted for entry.

Exhibitors are permitted to carry product and show materials onto CES present premises in extra of our two-bag restriction, starting January 6 and prior to eight a.m. on present days January 7-10. Exhibitors might also herald supplies on move-in days between 7:30 a.m. and 6 p.m.

You need to depart your baggage at your resort. Nevertheless, there are bag-check amenities at LVCC outdoors of Central and West Halls, Venetian Expo, Degree 1 Foyer; and the Venetian Ballroom Lobby.

Peak instances for CES crowds

The press occasions begin late on January 5 and proceed all day on January 6. That’s when a lot of the tales will run from CES bulletins, with some show-only bulletins occurring on January 7.

Along with Nvidia’s Huang, different keynote audio system embrace

Panasonic Holdings Group CEO Yuki Kusumi, who’s doing the morning keynote on Tuesday January 7 at 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. with Shapiro of the CTA and Kinsey Fabrizio, president of the CTA.

Jennifer Witz, CEO of SiriusXM, is talking with podcaster Ashley Flowers at 11 a.m. Tuesday January 7 on the Aria.

Linda Yaccarino, CEO of X, is talking at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday January 7 at The Venetian.

Ed Bastian, CEO of Delta, goes to be one of many highlights partly as a result of he’s obtained an important location: The Sphere, the spherical live performance venue with superb particular results. He’s talking at 4:55 p.m. on the Sphere on Tuesday January 7. We’ll see what Delta has to say about expertise, contemplating it is going to be celebrating its one hundredth birthday as an organization.

The keynotes wrap up on Wednesday January 8 with Martin Lundstedt, CEO of Volvo Group, at 9 a.m. at The Venetian; Julie Candy, CEO of Accenture at 2 p.m. Wednesday January 8.

There are many different panels. I’m moderating a session on AI and video games. It’s referred to as Pace, Customization, Innovation: AI in Gaming, happening on the Aria Joshua 8 at 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday January 7. It’s about unleashing the ability of AI in recreation growth. It’s about studying how publishers and builders use AI to hurry up releases and design and tailor video games for gamers.

My panelists embrace Burcu Hakguder, cofounder and CRO, Layer; Emilee Helm, head of influencers, Gamesight; Haval Othman, senior director of expertise engineering at HP; and Devin Reimer, founder and CEO at AstroBeam.

Press days

As I discussed, the press day will begin on Sunday January 5 with a chat (solely press allowed) in regards to the CTA’s view of tendencies to observe. That can result in the press-only occasion, CES Unveiled, at 5 p.m. on the Mandalay Bay. That’s the place we get a primary have a look at the award winners for the CTA innovation contest.

Then comes (for the media) a baptism of fireside beginning on Monday at 8 a.m. Pacific with LG’s press convention. It peaks with Samsung’s press occasion at 2 p.m. and continues on to Sony’s 5 p.m. press occasion on the Las Vegas Conference Heart. These press occasions occur in fast hearth and it’s an actual problem to maintain up with the information. Happily, most of the occasions are livestreamed for non-press to observe.

That is the day once I want the laptop computer with the longest battery life. (Sure, that’s nonetheless a difficulty). Then the press and others can head to the opening keynote speech for Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, on the Mandalay Bay’s Michelob Enviornment at 6:30 p.m. I’m undecided how I’m going to go from the Mandalay Bay to the conference heart and again to the Mandalay Bay is such a short while body. CES is all about such logistical nightmares and sophisticated options to them.

There’s additionally a giant press-only social gathering at Pepcom’s Digital Expertise at Caesars Palace (RSVPs required) on January 6 (7 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., after Huang’s speech), and the rival Showstoppers press-only social gathering takes place on the Bellagio on the night of January 7.

This 12 months, Tuesday is when the true crowds present up, and also you’ll discover it in eating places, transportation traces, conference halls, on line casino flooring, and on the airport. Let’s hope the climate might be good, in distinction to the torrential rains we noticed in 2018, when blackouts took out the principle present ground.

Should you’re leaving the conference focus on 6 p.m., you’ll be able to catch a bus to a lot of the main resorts. That’s an effective way to get off your ft and the traces can transfer quick. However that’s additionally the busiest site visitors time. You’ll should stroll (maybe a good distance) to designated areas for Uber/Lyft ride-sharing pickup zones. And there’s the monorail to contemplate as effectively for some resorts.

Getting misplaced within the maze

The two.5 million-plus sq. ft of exhibition area will open at 10 a.m. on Tuesday January 7.

The classes at this 12 months’s exhibit area embrace car tech and superior mobility, digital well being, audio/video, gaming, sensible residence, AI/robotics, sensible cities and sustainability, C Area, sports activities and health tech, enterprise and B2B, IoT infrastructure, metaverse, fintech, way of life, accessibility, Eureka Park (startups), 3D printing and area tech.

Should you’re actually bold, you could possibly be strolling 30,000 steps a day, about three to 6 instances as a lot as typical. For me, exhaustion units in round 20,000 steps. Should you can reduce some pointless strolling out of your day, that will be clever to do.

This 12 months’s venues have been renamed the LVCC Campus (Las Vegas Conference Heart West Corridor, North Corridor, South Corridor and Central Corridor), Venetian Campus(The Venetian, Palazzo, Wynn, Encore at Wynn) and C Area Campus (Aria, Cosmopolitan, Park MGM and Vdara).

The LVCC campus has the sprawling South Halls 1, 2 and three (upstairs) with all kinds of merchandise. The Central Corridor consists of gaming, audio and video with big corporations like Samsung, Sony, TCL, Canon, and extra. The North Corridor consists of classes like AI, B2B enterprise options, fintech, IoT infrastructure, sustainability, sensible cities, sensible cities IoT and car tech.

The West Corridor is filled with car tech with corporations like Brunswick within the marine class, John Deere in heavy equipment, carmakers, EVs and eVTOL plane, self-driving automobiles, software program, suppliers and car tech.

Over on the Venetian, there are greater than 1,400 startups that might be at Eureka Park. Tech West is a bunch of pavilions on the Venetian. There are tons of startups on Degree 1. You could find regional cubicles akin to these from France, India, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands and extra. On Degree 2, you’ll find AARP AgeTech, Kohler, Hyundai, Narwal, and extra.

One of the crucial often visited halls at LVCC was the South Corridor, however this 12 months the multi-level corridor is closed.

In Tech South, at Aria Resort, you’ll find C Area, which is the place there are a variety of talks about Hollywood and expertise. The Cosmopolitan has Cosmo exhibitors that embrace Nvidia, Disney, Paramount, NBC Common, Netflix, Reddit, Roku, Samsung, T-Cell, and Snap.

What’s trending and what’s not

Whereas blockchain and the metaverse have been massive themes a number of years in the past, AI was the large theme for 2024. In 2025, AI will nonetheless command a variety of consideration. However that doesn’t imply that tech growth goes to occur. The worldwide economic system faces a variety of unknowns, like how pleasant towards tech and shopper gross sales the Trump administration might be, particularly if Donald Trump is threatening tariffs. Tariffs may result in commerce wars and that might imply a $300 to $500 recreation console may out of the blue price $1,000.

Tim Bajarin, who’s going to his fiftieth CES, expects these tendencies: AI PCs are all over the place; earbuds might be smarter and smarter; smarter automobiles; smarter and better decision TVs; AI all over the place else; and spatial computing will make many appearances with XR/AR goggles or glasses.

Beneath the “join” a part of the theme of the present, Shapiro stated one main matter is human safety for all.

” We talked about human safety for all, our work with the United Nations specializing in the sustainable growth objectives, specializing in basic human safety in areas like well being care, funds, private security. We see that in all kinds of how. After all accessibility is one other massive factor. Even for me, attending the present in 2024, that was one of many greatest surprises and themes,” Shapiro stated. “I don’t assume I even talked about that earlier than the present – how many individuals have been there looking on behalf of the incapacity group, and what number of corporations have been responding to that with all kinds of expertise.”

Requested about different scorching classes, Shapiro stated, “Clearly AI continues to be a giant factor. It pervades virtually each class. Digital well being can be very massive. Mobility is large with electrical automobiles and related automobiles, autonomy, sustainability. We’ve performed our personal pivots as effectively. The idea of electrical energy being obtainable will not be one thing we’ve talked about at CES earlier than. Now we’ve got a complete convention observe on it. With electrical automobiles, generative AI, and quantum, all of them use large quantities of electrical energy that we’re not ready for. Not stunning to me, quite a few corporations within the final month have introduced offers with nuclear energy crops and issues like that, which is completely new, nevertheless it’s a manner of coping with it.”

And Shapiro stated, “We’ll have exhibitors specializing in vitality financial savings on the availability facet, warmth discount, native manufacturing. We’ll even have panels speaking about how we will have a look at the electrical grid. Equally to that vein, we’ll have a shift that we haven’t had earlier than to quantum computing. We’ve a half day of programming on that. Whereas AI and generative AI is presently the factor, now generative AI doesn’t get you to the end line with a variety of issues, for instance in well being care. It’s a complete shift upwards in computing that we haven’t had in a very long time.”

Regulators might be current, and Shapiro stated (earlier than the election occurred) he was involved that the U.S. has grow to be too aggressive in blocking mergers for antitrust causes. He worries that the Biden administration has been anti-innovation. I famous that I might like to see us return to balanced development, the place we see innovation with AI, job development for tech, and income development for corporations all on the similar time.

Shapiro stated, “What I’ve realized in my profession is that you just by no means get to excellent, however you simply attempt to do higher than you probably did final 12 months. The definition of excellent modifications. I don’t assume, in a free market economic system, that excellent is the place everybody will get to maintain their jobs. It’s a must to study new abilities.”

He added, “There’s one other idea on the market, although, which is that it’ll add extra free time, and that can generate its personal financial development. My spouse goes to a variety of medical conferences, and there’s a generational distinction between medical doctors in that the incoming medical doctors don’t need to work as exhausting. They need common hours. They don’t need the prolonged hours. I’ve been speaking about this for 2 years now. It’s true, and I do know this as a result of I’ve talked to sufficient medical doctors in numerous fields about it. Individuals need time now. It in all probability predated COVID. Individuals worth expertise and time. That’s what it’s.”

Your CES survival suggestions

Lots of the following tips are recycled from previous years, however I’ve gone via and renewed them with my newest data. As I discussed, it’s exhausting to get round at CES. You need to maintain appointments to a half hour however observe that it takes time to stroll between venues. It’s possible you’ll not notice it however the distance between resorts (that are very massive) and halls could look visually shut however they’re typically actually far aside.

It’s possible you’ll encounter delays as a result of different individuals are not on time. And you might even have bother discovering folks at massive cubicles. So, it’s good to pad your schedule to account for potential delays and isolate the actually necessary appointments.

The CES badges now have images on them, streamlining identification and making it tougher for folks to share badges. Since they’re paper badges (plastic eradicated within the identify of sustainability), you must watch out to not lose them.

In your crowded flights, attempt to journey gentle. For Southwest, I all the time test in forward of boarding, setting an alarm for precisely 24 hours earlier than my flight. Verify your baggage should you don’t should get wherever shortly. Be ready for lengthy cab traces and rental automobile check-in traces. (Companies like Uber and Lyft are very helpful at CES, notably as parking will not be plentiful sufficient and the large casinos/resorts now cost a charge per go to at their self-parking garages). I don’t hire a automobile anymore. On the airport, you must stroll to a chosen space in a parking storage and discover your rideshare in a specific parking slot to get out of the airport in an Uber/Lyft.

Uber and Lyft automobiles are actually the way in which to journey from venue to venue now. In previous years I discovered that the pickup on the LVCC (close to the Renaissance Resort) was a site visitors logjam. The Tesla tunnel (the place Tesla EVs take an underground tunnel from one location to a different) is nice for attending to a few of the resorts and between the central corridor and the west corridor of the LVCC. The tunnel now goes to the Resorts World Las Vegas, Westgate Las Vegas Resort & On line casino, Encore Las Vegas and Virgin Motels Las Vegas.

Schedule your appointments in places which might be close to one another, and test exhibitor places on a CES map. Arrive early for keynotes as a result of the traces are lengthy. I don’t typically stray past LVCC/WestHall/TechWest/Venetian as a result of time it takes to get different locations.

I like to recommend sleep. The Vegas air is tremendous dry so possibly use a humidier or nostril spray. If the events are what you care about, there are sometimes social gathering lists that flow into. You’ll be able to Google CES 2025 social gathering lists, however the KarenNet CES social gathering listm has been round for a very long time.

Keep in mind to swap telephone numbers with the folks you might be assembly so you’ll be able to coordinate, notably as somebody is often held up by the crowds. Incorporate driving and consuming instances into your calendar or use a calendar that does that robotically for you.

Smartphone reception is healthier than it was, nevertheless it’s nonetheless in all probability vulnerable to interference. Textual content message is often an honest strategy to talk with coworkers. We all the time hunt down the Wi-Fi/5G havens within the press rooms or wherever we will discover them.

However carry a MiFi or activate a private hotspot should you can; even resort web connections are more likely to be careworn to the restrict throughout the present. Should you’re accountable for importing video, thanks for clogging the community for the remainder of us. By CES 2025, I hopefully received’t should complain about this, as 5G networks ought to theoretically allow quicker connection speeds on mobile knowledge.

Should you accumulate a variety of swag, you’ll be able to ship it residence through transport companies as an alternative of carting it on the airplane. I believe that the price of transport might be better than the worth of the swag.

You need to print a map of the exhibit ground or rip one out of the present information. You must also print your tickets, schedule, and RSVPs for occasions — or make them simply accessible in your telephone. (If somebody steals your telephone or your main bag, it is best to have backups in a second bag).

You want battery backup on your laptop computer or smartphone, hand sanitizer, digicam, ibuprofen, and nutritional vitamins. I’ve obtained Acer Swift Go 14 and a spare Dynabook laptop computer this 12 months. The Acer particularly has battery life. Deliver a backup for every part, even when you must depart it in your resort room this 12 months.

I used to advocate taking enterprise playing cards. I lastly printed a batch for the primary time because the pandemic. Now you’ll be able to swap your LinkedIn credentials with folks through your smartphone. Should you’re exhibiting, put on your organization model in your shirt. Strive very exhausting to keep away from shedding your telephone. I put on a jacket with zippered pockets so I can put my telephone and pockets inside.

Make a while to stroll the present ground. If the cab/rideshare traces have you ever annoyed, don’t take into consideration strolling to a close-by resort. Chances are high the cab line there may be additionally unhealthy, and the resorts are so big {that a} mirage impact makes them look deceptively shut. You probably have a rental automobile, attempt to not get caught in a site visitors jam in a 10-story parking storage. And all the time mark down the place you parked your automobile in your telephone map or paper.

Drink plenty of water. Get some sleep — you actually don’t should social gathering each evening. For probably the most half, I don’t shake fingers anymore, because it’s an effective way to go germs round. As an alternative, I do fist bumps. You don’t need to come again sick with “CES crud” or COVID.

Don’t miss your flight on the way in which out. Pack up a bunch of snacks early on to keep away from getting caught in breakfast or lunch traces. Take a smartphone with digicam as a result of what occurs in Vegas … will get shared on the web.