CES 2023 Sets the Tone for the Future

CES grew up this year, where “tech for good” won out over “tech that wows.” DEI and accessibility came into focus at CES 2023, as participating companies chose to showcase technology intended for empowerment and practicality over the flashier, entertainment-based tech that took center stage at the CES events of yore.

Michelle Tang, McCann’s Chief Growth Officer, Brian Hughes, MAGNA’s EVP of Intelligence and Audience Strategy and Chad Stoller, Global Chief Innovation Officer at UM join CI Conversations host Jennifer Sain to discuss how this year’s CES focused on consumer experience and how tech can impact the consumer’s life, what was surprising about this year’s event and where the future of CES is headed.

CES 2023 saw a boom in healthcare tech, inspired partly by the rise in telehealth during the pandemic. Patient empowerment was a key theme, with a shift away from “wearables” and toward “aware”-ables designed to measure consumers’ vitals and collect other critical information meant to alert users to their own health statuses before they can make it to the doctor’s office. Sustainability, accessibility, and DEI tech were included under the “tech for good” umbrella, including a reality headset designed to support unemployed youth and a lipstick applicator for consumers with limited mobility. The Metaverse was not yet fully cohesive, but instead broken down into its components, with AR and VR featuring prominently.

For the future, we may see a trend in companies using empowering data collection that works collaboratively in favor of intrusive data collection. Consumers may shift toward choosing devices that work cohesively, in sync with one another, rather than put the onus on the individual to program each device separately. DEI and sustainability-centered tech are here to stay, with consumers voting with their wallets in favor of practical devices focused on doing good.

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