The 2025 of technology starts again from the new edition of the Consumer Electronics Show, the CES in Las Vegas which opens on January 7th. It is the most important global event in the sector which last year attracted over 4 thousand exhibiting companies and 135 thousand visitors. Born in ’67 as a fair dedicated to consumer electronics, it has evolved to become a showcase for every type of innovation, from gadgets to smart appliances to automotive, augmented and virtual reality and the inevitable artificial intelligence. In addition to the proposals of the various big names in technology regarding AI, the organizers dedicated several keynotes in the ‘Great Minds’ container. Then there is room for news with Intel, AMD and Qualcomm ready to unveil new generation processors, pushing performance towards new horizons, especially in the field of AI. The new GeForce Rtx 50 series graphics cards are eagerly awaited and promise to revolutionize video games. They are branded Nvidia, the company that in 2024 became the first technology company by capitalization in the world.
Ces is not dedicated to smartphones but every year it still offers a look at the most recent innovations in the sector. For example, Tcl plans to unveil its Qd-Mini LED technology which will also be used in phones, tablets and smartwatches. Moreover, a model of the company (the 50 Pro Nxtpaper 5G smartphone) with a screen that imitates paper and rejects reflections it has already won the Ces Innovation Award 2025. In Las Vegas you often see experimental products but no announcements from the big names in the sector who now decide to hold independent conferences for their products. Like Samsung which chose the end of January, therefore not Las Vegas, to unveil its new Galaxy S25, a direct rival of the iPhone. The Korean giant should instead bring its first mixed reality viewer to Ces in collaboration with Qualcomm and Google. The latter has already announced the Android Xr platform which covers both augmented and virtual reality and it is not certain that new models will not arrive at Ces ready to run on the futuristic operating system. Speaking of entertainment, there is room for next-generation portable consoles, led by those from Lenovo, Asus and MSI. Automotive will also be at the Consumer Electronics Show.
For the first time, however, many car manufacturers including Ford and General Motors have decided to skip the event. Honda and the startup Scout will represent the category with electric and, in the case of Waymo, self-driving cars. The latter should confirm the launch of the robotaxi service in the main US cities and on an experimental basis in Europe. At Ces, however, attention towards televisions seems to have waned. The advent of panels with 8K technology was not followed by content capable of concretely benefiting from technical innovation. It is more useful to look at TVs that can improve standard broadcasts towards higher viewing quality, through so-called ‘upscaling’. Finally, Italy brings 46 startups from 14 regions to Las Vegas. Among the largest groups at the pavilion in Eureka Park organized by the Ice Agency are those from Sardinia and Piedmont who support the event in an institutional manner. The Northern regions include the majority of startups, but the South is well represented with companies from Campania, Sicily, Molise, Puglia and Calabria.