By Barton Goldenberg
Bethesda, Maryland
January 2025

My business colleague, Tim Bajarin, and I had separate speaking sessions at CES 2025. Tim focused on the technical side specifically on the latest smart glasses and immersive headset developments, whereas I focused on the business side of how companies are leveraging AI and Spatial Computing to drive business results. Our speaker rooms were filled to the brim, and apparently our sessions, which you can access from the CES website, were very well received by participants.

Here is my key CES 2025 finding:

AI is red hot! Every company is trying to determine their AI strategy. This represents forward progress from last year when the discussion was more around what is AI.

Three CES keynotes stood out

1. Tech: NVIDIA’s keynote set the tempo for this year’s CES: visionary and superbly executed. While Microsoft, Google and others are very important players, NVIDIA is driving the trajectory of AI. They announced at least a dozen new AI-enabling or enabled products for 2025, including a new AI supercomputer for $2,800; this PC could take the market by fire. NVIDIA chips, hardware and software future efforts will focus on supporting three types of robots – agentic robots, autonomous vehicle robots, and humanoid robots. Buckle in; this is going to be one heck of a ride!
2. Manufacturing: Volvo’s keynote was in a league of its own. It too was visionary – zero admission and AI-driven heavy-duty trucks, construction equipment, and more. Three energy sources will drive this vision: battery electric, fuel-cell electric, and internal combustion. What impressed me most was the Swedish culture – hard-working and be curious – that has led to extreme innovation (in addition to the 3-point seatbelt, did you know the Swedes also created the zipper and the crescent wrench!). This keynote was delivered in VR!
3. Consumer: Delta Airlines’ keynote took place in the Sphere building that allows for a 3D experience meaning we were in the pilot’s seat for much of the presentation. Celebrating its 100^th year in service, Delta described how it will deliver an increasingly customer-focused experience from your home to your final destination. While AI technology will play a distinct role delivering this vision, Delta’s commitment to its customers will deliver on this vision.

Exhibitor Standouts

There are thousands of exhibition booths to visit, making it impossible to cover the show floor. But certain exhibition booths/products/observations stood out:

1. BMW’s latest 7 series electric vehicle is gorgeous and has been approved by the German government for self-driving to 37 mph and assisted driving above 37b mph. This is a big deal in a country that loves to drive automobiles.
2. AR smart glasses are taking the market by storm. This includes the Meta Ray glasses, the iReal glasses, the Rokin glasses and several others. Consumers love the small form factor filled with amazing, practical features (e.g., taking picture and videos from your eyeglasses, listening to your favorite music, get AI-generated answers to questions concerning objects that you have looking at, and more). It would not surprise me to see smart glasses penetrate these three sectors over the next 12 months: education, training and surgery. It seems that Meta, Apple, and Google will lead the way in creating the XR platforms of the future that support these AR smart glasses.
3. Last year I saw at CES, Chinese company Xpeng’s flying car. This year they displayed the portable helicopter that will transport you anywhere and that fits in the trunk of a cyber truck!
4. The real and virtual worlds have increasingly converged. It is hard to differentiate between the two now that advanced creator tools exist from Sony and others to create and animate with increasing ease digital scenes including digital twins and real-life avatars.

I will close my CES 2025 findings to point out a theme that has become increasingly important to the AI and Spatial Computing industry: the sheer fun that these tools are adding to so many lives as they form an integral part of one’s life.

Barton Goldenberg (bgoldenberg@ismguide.com) is president of ISM, Inc. For 40 years, ISM has helped global companies successfully apply leading-edge technologies to sales, marketing, and customer service. We offer 4 services: AI and Spatial Computing, CRM, and Digital Communities to help sales, marketing, customer service, and field service executives move their performance to the next level. His thought leadership including creator of the ‘Business Success in a Virtual World’ podcast, creator of the award-winning AI and Spatial Computing Resource Center, and author of three business books including The Definitive Guide to Social CRM. He is also in high demand as a keynote speaker (www.bartongoldenberg.com).