CES, the Client Electronics Present, is the world’s largest tech present, the place firms launch new devices and announce new developments, and it occurs each January. This yr, it attracted over 148,000 attendees and over 4,100 exhibitors. It sprawls throughout the Las Vegas Conference Heart, town’s largest exhibition house, and spills over into adjoining accommodations.
China has lengthy had a presence at CES, however this yr it confirmed up in a giant method. Chinese language exhibitors accounted for almost 1 / 4 of all firms on the present, and in pockets like AI {hardware} and robotics, China’s presence felt particularly dominant. On the ground, I noticed tons of Chinese language trade attendees roaming round, plus a notable variety of Chinese language VCs. A number of skilled CES attendees advised me that is the primary post-covid CES the place China was current in a method you couldn’t miss. Final yr might need been trending that method too, however lots of Chinese language attendees reportedly bumped into visa denials. Now AI has turn into the common excuse, and purpose, to make the journey.
As anticipated, AI was the largest theme this yr, seen on each sales space wall. It’s each the largest factor everyone seems to be speaking about and a deeply complicated advertising and marketing gimmick. “We added AI” is slapped onto every thing from the cheap (PCs, telephones, TVs, safety methods) to the deranged (slippers, hair dryers, mattress frames).
Client AI devices nonetheless really feel early and of very uneven high quality. The commonest classes are academic gadgets and emotional assist toys—which, as I’ve written about not too long ago, are all the fashion in China. There are some memorable ones: Luka AI makes a robotic panda that scuttles round and retains a watchful eye in your child. Fuzozo, a fluffy keychain-size AI robotic, is principally a digital pet in bodily kind. It comes with a built-in persona and reacts to the way you deal with it. The businesses promoting these simply hope you received’t assume too exhausting in regards to the privateness implications.
Ian Goh, an investor at 01.VC, advised me China’s manufacturing benefit provides it a novel edge in AI client electronics, as a result of lots of Western firms really feel they merely can’t battle and win within the enviornment of {hardware}.
One other space the place Chinese language firms appear to be on the head of the pack is family electronics. The merchandise they make have gotten impressively subtle. Dwelling robots, 360 cams, safety methods, drones, lawn-mowing machines, pool warmth pumps … Do you know two Chinese language manufacturers principally dominate the marketplace for house cleansing robots within the US and are consuming the lunch of Dyson and Shark? Do you know nearly all of the suburban yard tech you should buy within the West comes from Shenzhen, regardless that that entire backyard-obsessed way of life barely exists in China? These items is so modern that you simply wouldn’t clock it as Chinese language except you went trying. The outdated “low cost and repetitive” stereotype doesn’t clarify what I noticed. I walked away from CES feeling that I wanted a significant house equipment improve.
In fact, home equipment are a secure, mature market. On the extra experiential entrance, humanoid robots have been a large magnet for crowds, and Chinese language firms placed on a terrific present. Each robotic appeared to be dancing, in types from Michael Jackson to Okay-pop to lion dancing, some even doing again flips. Hangzhou-based Unitree even arrange a boxing ring the place folks may “problem” its robots. The robotic fighters have been about half the scale of an grownup human and the matches typically led to a robotic knockout, however that’s not likely the purpose. What Unitree was truly displaying off was its robots’ stability and steadiness: they received shoved, stumbled throughout the ring, and stayed upright, recovering mid-motion. Past flexing dynamic actions like these there have been additionally spectacular showcases of dexterity: Robots may very well be seen folding paper pinwheels, doing laundry, enjoying piano, and even making latte artwork.
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Nonetheless, most of those robots, even the nice ones, are one-trick ponies. They’re optimized for a selected job on the present ground. I attempted to make one fold a T-shirt after I’d flipped the garment round, and it received confused in a short time.
