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But the heart and soul of CES are neither the tipsters nor the journalists who follow them. It’s the tech makers that make the show special, and a fully virtual CES wasn’t necessarily right for them. “The smaller brands are probably the ones that have suffered the most this year,” said Carolina Milanesi, analyst and founder of research firm The Heart of Tech. “Because unless you have a designated place or experience on the website, it was just a long list of names.”
Milanesi shared an observation that one of my colleagues at WIRED also made: The chance of the find was gone. One of the most exciting parts of CES was finding an odd product in a back corner of the giant exhibition hall and learning something new by sheer luck. During a virtual CES, it is almost impossible.
Several tech companies that I emailed or spoke to in the days leading up to the event told me they just weren’t participating this year. CTA always charged between $ 1,200 and $ 1,500 for a gadget maker to become a “digital exhibitor”. This does not include the additional fees to participate in tangential events like Pepcom (between $ 2,500 and $ 10,000, according to documents reviewed by WIRED). For that amount, many small businesses would be better off emailing reporters or potential business partners directly and setting up their own Zoom briefings.
Ultimately, this year’s CES felt out of step with current events. A session on gender and racial bias in AI did not include a mention of Timnit Gebru. Another panel of Twitter and Google executives focused more on the GDPR than on the bigger, more immediate news: the spread of disinformation on social media and Twitter’s role in the violent storming. from the United States Capitol the week before the show.
There were exceptions which made the show feel more firmly of the moment. During AMD’s opening speech, CEO Lisa Su was joined by scientists who explained how additional teraflops of AMD computing power is helping them scan for infectious diseases like Covid-19. Tuesday’s conference sessions began with a 30-minute conversation with Abbott’s executive vice president of rapid diagnostics and Microsoft’s medical director on molecular testing and supply chain logistics for the distribution of vaccines. In another keynote address that morning, Brad Smith, President of Microsoft, tackled the issues of the day head-on, speaking about the recent SolarWinds hack and the profound implications of this type of cyber espionage.
This is of course the problem with technology: it can be both our source of danger and a solution to our problems. CES has always been more about solutions, and that’s a big part of its appeal. “We have seen the pressure on healthcare systems, our schools, our businesses, large and small,” said Gary Shapiro, head of the Consumer Technology Association, which produces CES each year. “But in these uncertain times, technology has been a stabilizer. A unifying force. “
I asked CTA if they had considered canceling this year’s event altogether or hosting a seriously scaled-down show. A spokesperson said he still believes CES 2021 is “an opportunity for the tech community to unite, come together and focus on a better future.” CTA has yet to release the number of people logged into CES online. The organization noted that being virtual it would be much more accessible to people around the world this year.
This may very well be true. And as with everything CES, there were some tech, new stuff, and quirks that I’m sure we’ll be talking about for months to come.
But I really, really want to be together again next year.
More WIRED on CES 2021
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