For every big screen TV and head-turning AI model that emerged out of CES this year, there was a company trying to find a market for something that was just plain odd — at best. Part of the joy of walking the Consumer Electronics Show’s increasingly large floor is stumbling across gadgets that make you stop, stare and, ask “whut??”
You can’t shake a stick without hitting an AI gadget at CES this year, with artificial smarts now embedded in just about every wearable, screen, and appliance across the show floor, not to mention the armies of AI companions, toys, and robots. But those are just the beginning. We’ve seen AI pop up in much stranger places too, from hair clippers to stick vacs, and at least one case where even the manufacturer itself seemed unsure what made its products “AI.”
CES is home to some of the coolest, cutting-edge, and most innovative technology around. But within this sea of tech are always some pretty strange gadgets. This year’s conference was no different, packed with a whole bunch of wacky devices, some of which might have a chance of taking off, and others… maybe not so much. Highlights include Mirumi, the shy sloth-like robot, A phone battery charger that resembles a toaster, A retractable keyboard, An even more portable LG StanbyME display, SwitchBot’s modular, multitasking robot, An 18-karat gold smart ring, LG’s air purifier your cat can sit on, The “world’s first wearable solar panel”, LG’s indoor gardening side table, Encapsulated anime girls that talk to you…