As CES 2018 unfolds, here are some tech trends to follow
Imagine this: When you leave the house, your air conditioner and lights turn off automatically. Then when a motion sensor detects a person in the house, like your house cleaner, it sends an alert to your phone. When you arrive home, a camera recognizes who you are and the door automatically unlocks.
Automated technologies like these will be at the forefront of CES, one of the world’s largest tech conventions, next week at the Las Vegas Convention Center. They underline one major trend: Increasingly, the innovations that are making their way into your personal technology aren’t physical electronics or gadgets at all.
The real star is artificial intelligence, the culmination of software, algorithms and sensors working together to make your everyday appliances smarter and more automated. It is AI that is telling the door to unlock when the camera recognizes you, or sending an alert to your phone when sensors detect a person.
“It’s less about the hardware, and more about what’s inside,” Carolina Milanesi, a technology analyst for Creative Strategies, said about the prominence of artificial intelligence and software innovations at CES. For consumers who are dazzled by flashy new devices, AI is never as exciting, she said — but it’s the magic that is making hardware evolve.
That artificial intelligence will take center stage at CES also speaks to how the event has changed in the last few years. It has become less of a venue for tech companies to unveil splashy new products like smartphones or computers, and instead has turned into a showcase for nascent technologies.
Here are some highlights you can expect from next week’s show.
Alexa and her counterparts
Alexa, Amazon’s intelligent assistant that listens to your voice commands to play music, order diapers and place a phone call, will be everywhere at CES.
Smaller tech companies have teamed up with Amazon to bring voice-controlled smarts to their products. Devices like light bulbs, car stereo accessories, robovacuums, home security systems and even coffee makers will work with Alexa. In addition, thousands of companies have developed “Skills,” or third-party apps, that work with Alexa voice commands. Sonos, a premium audio brand, recently released a speaker that can be controlled with Alexa.
What’s fueling interest in Alexa? Amazon’s success with Echo, the smart speakers enabled with the personal assistant. Amazon said last month that it sold tens of millions of Echo devices over the holiday season. Strategy Analytics, a research firm, estimates that 68 percent of voice-controlled speakers sold last year worked with Alexa.
Other tech giants want a piece of the
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