CES 2023 May Appeal to 100,000 In-Particular person Attendees

Enormous commerce reveals are again, in keeping with the business group behind the Client Electronics Present. The CTA tasks the 2023 model of CES to as soon as once more draw 1000’s of individuals when it kicks off on Jan. 5 in Las Vegas. “We’re optimistic we will hit our attendance objective of 100,000, which might make it the most important independently audited post-pandemic tech occasion” Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the Client Know-how Affiliation, mentioned in an announcement.

The final time CES broke six-figure attendance was in January 2020, when it drew 171,000 folks. As a result of pandemic the present was fully digital in 2021. The final model of the CES, held in January 2022 amid a nationwide surge of the Omicron COVID variant, drew solely 40,000 attendees and was lower quick by a day.

The annual Consumer Electronics Show is the tech industry’s largest in-person trade event, gathering thousands of companies inside the 2.5 million square-foot Las Vegas Convention Center. News, product announcements and trends from the show help set the agenda for the year in technology and provide shoppers a glimpse of innovations coming down the pike. In addition to the usual parade of new TVs, laptops and robots, themes at CES 2023 include electric and self-driving cars, digital health care, sustainability and the metaverse.

In an interview with CNET, Shapiro was bullish on the prospects for in-person attendance at CES 2023. “One thing that’s clear around the world, except perhaps in China right now, is that events are back,” he said. “Airplanes are full. I have flown a lot in the last year, and I have yet to be on a flight that isn’t almost full.”

Last year numerous major companies, including Amazon, AMD, Google and Microsoft either canceled or modified their in-person plans. All are currently listed, along with 26 other large companies, as featured exhibitors for CES 2023. “I’d say almost all the majors are back,” Shapiro said. 

The CTA is encouraging attendees to take familiar precautions attending the show, such as getting a flu shot and a COVID vaccine and booster, as well as self-testing at home prior to arriving in Vegas. Once on-site, masks will be encouraged but not required on the show floor, and self-tests will be available. Shapiro cited additional precautions as well, including widening aisles and keeping some convention center doors open.

As the pandemic ebbs and most people’s lives return to normal, many companies are back to holding in-person press events to announce new products. Apple’s launch of the iPhone 14 last month, for example, was held in-person as a proper live event for the first time since 2019. Samsung Unpacked in August was also held in-person again following an all-virtual event in 2021.

None of those events are as large or as international as CES, however. The CTA expects one-third of CES 2023 attendees to travel to Vegas from outside the US. If recent history is any indication there could be another surge in COVID cases this winter. The CTA says it will monitor the situation closely, but didn’t point to a specific contingency plan if cases spike. 

“We recognize that there are things we don’t control,” Shapiro said. “We’ll do what’s in the best interest of the health and safety of the people attending the show. There is no plan on the table to go from four days to three days at this point.”

CNET also plans to attend CES 2023 in-person. The show runs from Jan. 5 through Jan. 8, 2023.