The old chestnut has been passed over by industry watchers for the past decade. CES – one of the world's largest consumer technology trade shows – turned into an auto show. Maybe even the most important auto show of the year.
And there was plenty of evidence for that. GM president and CEO Mary Barra used it. CES stage in 2016 Introducing the electric Chevrolet Bolt to the world. In 2022, Barra made another big splash at CES when she announced that General Motors would. Sell your own autonomous vehicles By “the middle of the decade”.
Meanwhile, Ram and Chrysler, two American brands owned by Stellantis, used CES to showcase future EVs. Ram 1500 BEV In 2023
Ford is probably the most visible CES exhibitor, at least on the automotive front. The American automaker used CES for a focus. Technical announcements including its Smart Mobility Plan since at least 2011 and 2015; Self-driving car goals 2016 Future type of EV City of Tomorrow vision in 2017 and 2018; includes a building. Cloud platform with Autonomic For smart cities.
Not a single American automaker to be found this year, unless you count VW Group's US spinoff Scout Motors. Several Chinese automakers have filled the gap, particularly Zeekr, an EV brand owned by China's Geely Holdings. Premium brands Wey and Xpeng under Great Wall Motor also have showrooms.
Brian Moody, senior editor at Kelley Blue Book, told TechCrunch that their absence is due to the typical product cycle that is longer in automobiles than in other consumer electronics. “It's a circle,” he said. That's a boring answer,” he said in a recent interview. “Auto manufacturing product cycles are much longer than consumer product cycles. It takes longer to build a car in the real world.”
He also said that automakers are beginning to rethink their presence at shows like CES. “What's the ROI if you're not generating millions and millions of impressions with consumers?” Media fragmentation contributes to this concern, he pondered.
Ford spokesperson Alan Hall told TechCrunch that the company hasn't gone live (showcases or press announcements) this year, but CES remains an important show for exploring new technologies and trends in consumer electronics, so we'll have a number. Our engineer Design Supply chain and product planning team members are there.
For example, some Ford employees participated in seminars such as the Connect2Car conference.
A GM spokeswoman confirmed that all deals, though few through a few partners, are being adjusted by the company based on various business factors and priorities.
Nevertheless, Walking through the West Hall floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center where you can find almost all kinds of automotive technology; The absence of US automakers is notable. Nowhere to be found booths showcasing EVs or in-car software from US companies.
Several Chinese automakers have filled the gap, particularly Zeekr, an EV brand owned by China's Geely Holdings.
It has also expanded to other automakers, such as Mercedes-Benz, which have traditionally had large displays at CES.
Mercedes made the decision to skip CES after carefully considering and evaluating our strategic direction for the coming year, spokesman Patrick Kuom told TechCrunch, adding that the company was at partner Xperi's booth. said
Some automakers already have the Asimo operating system, such as Honda, which showed two of its cars in the upcoming 0 Series, and BMW has revealed more about it. New in-car user interface. Toyota made a surprise announcement at its press conference. First step completed. Its living laboratory, Woven City, and its exploration into orbital rockets are buried;
But the main theme is autonomous driving and software — and legacy automakers don't have much to show on that front. Instead, Companies working on autonomous driving—or the sensors that support it—and software took up the bulk of the floor. AV giants Zoox and Waymo will also be exhibiting (along with a Zoox ride-on robot), along with others like May Mobility and Japanese company Tier IV.
Software and sensor companies Aeva; A few, including Applied Intuition and Sonatus, became popular.