More AI offerings at CES 2025 with a glimpse of quantum

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More AI offerings at CES 2025 with a glimpse of quantum

Published: 04 Jan. 2025, 07:00

JIN EUN-SOO
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

SK's CES 2025 booth [SK TELECOM]

The world’s tech spotlight turns to Las Vegas this week as CES 2025 opens its doors, promising groundbreaking innovations and the next big trends from industry giants and rising stars alike.

This year’s event, themed “Dive In,” will showcase a diverse range of technologies, from AI and mobility to digital health, home entertainment, robotics and more.

For the first time, a dedicated session on quantum technology has been established in collaboration with the World Quantum Congress, nailing it down as the next promising sector to expedite the deployment of AI.

A total of 4,800 companies from about 160 countries are registered for this year’s show, including 1,031 from Korea — a record high. This follows 1,509 companies from the U.S. and 1,339 from China. Korean startups account for 641 participants, up from 512 in 2024 and 273 in 2023.

Slogan of this year's CES [SCREEN CAPTURE]

AI in daily life

This year, AI will focus on enhancing daily life, moving beyond what they are capable of, as they did at last year’s CES.

“A dominant trend at CES 2024, AI will remain a major topic in 2025. While headlines often focus on what AI 'could do,' this technology is already making an impact through increased productivity, enhanced customer experiences and life-saving medical advancements,” the Consumer Technology Association, the show’s organizer, stated on its website.

Samsung Electronics CEO Han Jong-hee will hold a news conference titled “AI for All: Everyday, Everywhere” on Monday, ahead of the official kickoff. Han, who showed off the robotic projector Ballie, may provide updates on its release this time.

Samsung’s booth will feature AI-enhanced home appliances like refrigerators, washers and dryers equipped with touch screens. These connected devices, powered by the AI voice assistant Bixby, can answer calls, check the weather and stream YouTube or Spotify.

LG Electronics' Signature line of AI-topped home appliances [LG ELECTRONICS]

Meanwhile, LG Electronics’ news conference, themed “Life’s Good 24/7 with Affectionate Intelligence,” will see CEO William Cho discuss the company’s AI vision and applications. LG will showcase premium appliances under its Signature brand, including the Smart InstaView Refrigerator with a transparent organic light-emitting diode panel. This AI-equipped fridge tracks fresh ingredients and transforms into a TV or art display when not in use — a feature similar to Samsung’s offerings from last year.

Companies like SK will focus on infrastructure development that enables the processing of AI.

SK's booth, themed “Innovative AI, Sustainable Tomorrow,” will be participated by its affiliates SK Telecom, SK hynix, SKC and SK Enmove. It will present the core technologies enabling its AI data centers such as AI processors, energy solutions and security.

SK hynix will showcase 16-layered high bandwidth memory 3E (HBM3E) for the first time to global audiences while also presenting its advanced chip solutions like Compute Express Link (CXL) that will help it maintain leadership in AI memory chip realm.
With SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won confirmed to be participating in the show, as he has always done with previous editions, it remains to be seen whether a meet-up between Chey and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang will take place.

The two have had close business relations with SK hynix almost exclusively supplying its HBM chips to Nvidia's AI GPUs.

Huang is making an opening keynote speech at the show on Monday.

Samsung Electronics' home appliances topped with AI-powered touch screens [SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS]

100-inch TVs

CES has long been a battleground for TV technology, and this year is no exception. The rapid rise of Chinese brands like TCL and Hisense has intensified competition with legacy players like Samsung and LG.

While details remain scarce, Samsung and LG are expected to spotlight 100-inch Mini LED TVs, countering TCL and Hisense’s advancements in this space. LG recently introduced a 100-inch QNED TV, its branded Mini LED line, addressing surging demand for ultralarge screens.

“It will deliver an overwhelming, unparalleled large-screen viewing experience that cannot be matched by other LCD [liquid crystal display] TVs,” said Park Hyung-se, head of LG’s Media Solution division.

Samsung, which hinted at plans for 100-inch TVs during last year’s IFA, is also likely to make a move.

Samsung Electronics is also premiering TVs topped with 3-D audio technology called Eclipsa Audio, which it codeveloped with Google. The technology enables surrounding sound by optimizing sound data in accordance with the environment.

The Korean electronics giant said the sound technology will be available from Crystal UHD to Neo QLED 8K TVs.

LG Electronics' Mobility eXperience platform poised to showcase at CES 2025 [LG ELECTRONICS]

Mobility

In recent years, CES has attracted a growing number of automotive companies showcasing their latest technologies. This year, however, tech firms are driving mobility innovations forward, with traditional automakers also in attendance.

LG Electronics unveiled its Mobility eXperience (MX) platform, transforming vehicle interiors into customizable spaces equipped with AI-powered appliances and IoT devices. Options range from a relaxing lounge to a creative studio, home theater or library.

While Hyundai Motor is skipping this year’s CES, its affiliate Hyundai Mobis will exhibit technologies like the holographic windshield display, which provides a panoramic view of navigation and infotainment data, and human-centric interior lighting that adapts to the driver’s mood.

Japanese auto giant Toyota returns to CES after a five-year hiatus, showcasing updates to its Woven City prototype at the base of Mount Fuji, where employees test and develop technology in AI, robotics and autonomous driving.

Startups

Fifteen startups incubated by Samsung Electronics' C-Lab will participate in this year's CES. [SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS]

While CES serves as a prominent platform for established companies to showcase their latest innovations, it is often startups that introduce truly groundbreaking technology capable of shifting the existing paradigm.

C-Lab, an incubator run by Samsung, will have 15 of its startups showcasing their latest innovations at Eureka Park, a venue committed to startups.

Six of them are dedicated to AI, such as Deep.fine, which specializes in remote 3-D augmented reality solutions, and Cochl, which analyzes non-voice sounds.

LG NOVA, an incubator run by LG Electronics, will present 10 of its startups at the show.

LG NOVA's booth is themed “Innovation is Here, Build with Us” at Eureka Park, exhibiting technology in fields like health and AI.

One of its participating startups is Primefocus Health which spun off from LG NOVA in the first half of last year and is doing business in the United States. It specializes in AI-powered early diagnosis solutions for conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure.

Ten startups invested in by Naver D2SF, a corporate venture capital arm of Korean portal giant Naver, will also make their way to the show this year. Among them, Gaudio Lab received an Innovation Award this year for its AI-based sound analysis solution that aims to detect music with copyright issues.