CES 2026: Our 5 Key Takeaways

Mobile, long at the center of innovation narratives, is notably absent. Major launches are few and far between, and apps or screens are no longer in the spotlight. They are being replaced by new devices worn on the body (wearables) such as rings, glasses, or watches.

In this context, CES 2026 highlights concrete changes in how products, platforms, and digital experiences are designed.

Here are the five elements that particularly stand out to us.

1. AI becomes transparent

At CES 2026, announcements related to AI almost never focus on isolated features. At Nvidia, AMD, and Intel, the discussion centers on computing power, energy optimization, and the ability to run heavy AI workloads continuously.

Presentations emphasize performance at scale, platform stability, and the ability to support production use cases. AI is described as a foundational building block, on par with cloud or networking, rather than as a one-off innovation.

What stands out from CES is not what AI can do, but how it can be operated over time. Players talk about infrastructure, costs, availability, and reliability. This clearly reflects a shift from experimentation to industrialization.

But caution is needed: industrializing AI does not automatically guarantee value creation. Several players emphasize platform robustness, but far less often the ability of organizations to turn that power into concrete, measurable, and sustainable gains. CES 2026 shows that the infrastructure is ready. The value, however, still needs to be built.

2. Agentic AI fully integrated

CES 2026 marks a notable shift in how agentic AI is presented. The topic is no longer framed as a future vision, but as a capability integrated into products.

At Amazon, Alexa+ is described as a system capable of chaining multiple actions from a single request. The focus is on execution, not just language understanding. The assistant is presented as being able to act across different services rather than being limited to conversational interaction.

At Microsoft and Google, announcements emphasize agents capable of orchestrating tasks across multiple tools. AI capabilities are presented as cross-cutting elements that can operate in different contexts without being redeveloped each time.

What CES 2026 shows is that agentic AI is now conceived as an execution layer. Players talk about systems that act, trigger, and coordinate, and much less about assistants that simply suggest.

3. Mobile takes a back seat

One of the most striking observations at CES 2026 concerns mobile. Announcements related to smartphones are rare and not prominently featured. Major keynotes and press releases speak very little about new experiences centered on apps or screens.

At Samsung and Qualcomm, the focus is not on the smartphone as a flagship product, but on embedded AI, edge computing, and continuity across devices. Mobile is present as a support layer, but it is not presented as the primary site of innovation.

This silence is revealing. CES 2026 shows that the smartphone is no longer the object around which the technological narrative is built. It remains a key access point, but it is approached as part of a broader whole.

This shift is clearly visible in how players talk about their ecosystems. Mobile is mentioned as a point of control or validation, rarely as the core of the experience.

4. Toward federating AI

Another clear takeaway emerges from the discussions at CES 2026. Major players talk much less about individual products and much more about platforms capable of supporting multiple use cases.

At Microsoft, announcements around AI emphasize cross-cutting integration across the entire ecosystem. Capabilities are presented as accessible from multiple environments, rather than as features added to a specific product.

At Google, the same shift is visible. Presentations focus on unified environments where models, data, and orchestration capabilities are shared across different use cases.

At Amazon, Alexa+ is explicitly described as a layer capable of acting across multiple services and devices. The emphasis is not on a device or an interface, but on the platform’s ability to connect different contexts.

What emerges from CES 2026 is that value is increasingly associated with these shared foundations. Products become visible entry points into a single platform, rather than independent entities.

However, a common platform does not automatically guarantee true interoperability. Several announcements highlight integrated environments, but the ability to make heterogeneous, legacy, or external systems communicate remains a major challenge. CES 2026 shows a clear intent from major players, but concrete implementation remains a complex undertaking for organizations.

5. Robotics in service of AI

It is also noticeable that artificial intelligence is no longer limited to digital interfaces. It is beginning to act directly in the physical world. Robotics thus becomes a natural extension of AI and agentic systems, rather than a separate segment.

Several announcements point in this direction. At LG, humanoid robots such as CLOiD are presented as agents capable of interacting with their environment and executing concrete tasks. At Unitree, demonstrations highlight robots capable of moving and adapting to uncontrolled environments, illustrating an action-oriented AI rather than simple assistance.

The show also highlights a more pragmatic form of robotics, often non-humanoid. Autonomous industrial robots, legged vacuum robots, or specialized platforms prioritize efficiency and adaptation to real-world constraints.

This evolution is closely tied to advances in algorithms. With platforms such as Rubin at Nvidia, AI is trained and simulated in realistic physical environments. It learns to deal with gravity, friction, and unpredictability, not just abstract data.

What CES 2026 reveals is an AI that moves beyond the digital realm to act in the world as it is. A promising evolution, but one that already raises a central strategic question: when AI acts physically, where does responsibility lie, and how can trust be ensured at scale?

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CES 2026 did not seek to create a surprise effect. Instead, it showed an industry that is consolidating its foundations. AI is treated as infrastructure, agentic systems are presented as an operational capability, platforms take precedence over isolated products, and the overall discourse around AI is gaining maturity.

For our industry, these signals are clear. They point to a lasting shift toward more integrated, more orchestrated systems designed to operate over time, well beyond simple technological demonstrations.