What to expect from tech’s big January conference

The brand new yr is upon us, and which means CES 2026 is imminent. The largest tech commerce present of the calendar comes with a bevy of recent and notable bulletins that set the tone for developments and expectations for the following 12 months. The CES 2026 present flooring is formally open from January 6 via 9, however the enjoyable kicks off with occasions on Sunday January 4, adopted by a number of press conferences on Monday. As at all times, product demos, bulletins and networking will likely be taking place on the Las Vegas Conference Heart and different motels all around the metropolis. As traditional, Engadget will likely be protecting the occasion in-person and remotely, bringing you information and hands-ons straight from the present flooring.

Extra particular particulars and pre-announcements are already trickling out as CES approaches, and due to the schedule of the Client Expertise Affiliation (the commerce group that runs the present) we’ve got a full itinerary of press conferences. We’re additionally utilizing our expertise and experience to foretell what tech developments might rear their heads on the present.

The CES 2026 schedule

Press conferences and present flooring cubicles are the bread and butter of CES. The CTA has already revealed a searchable directory of who can have an official presence on the present, together with a schedule of each official panel and presentation. Nevertheless, the press conference schedule provides us a extra digestible rundown of the primary 48 hours of huge occasions.

On Sunday, January 4, Samsung will kick-off CES with “The First Look,” a presentation hosted by TM Roh, the CEO of Samsung’s DX Division, on the corporate’s “imaginative and prescient for the DX (Machine eXperience) Division in 2026, together with new AI-driven buyer experiences.” Forward of that, although, Samsung has already outlined quite a lot of extra specifics (scroll down for particulars). Concurrent with the Samsung presentation would be the official CES Unveiled mini-show, which is mostly comprised of smaller and start-up distributors.

That’ll be adopted by a number of press conferences all through Monday, January 5. The LG CES 2026 press convention, titled “Innovation in Tune with You,” is ostensibly to share “its imaginative and prescient for elevating each day life via Affectionate Intelligence.” However, like Samsung, this fellow Korean large has already spent the three weeks main as much as CES pre-announcing lots of its new merchandise, so this can be extra of a abstract than breaking information.

Following LG, we’ll additionally see press conferences from Bosch and Hisense, in addition to the first-ever CES look from Lego. Because the Las Vegas afternoon rolls round, we get the primary of three chip giants: NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang takes the stage on January 5 at 1PM PT (4PM ET) and, in accordance with the web site, his presentation will final about 90 minutes. Based mostly on the outline on the itemizing, the presentation will “showcase the most recent NVIDIA options driving innovation and productiveness throughout industries.” NVIDIA’s presser is concurrent with one from Hyundai, the place the Korean automotive firm will deal with in-cabin automobile tech and robotics.

Later within the day, we get to listen to from NVIDIA frenemies Intel and AMD. Intel’s 3PM PT (6PM PT) occasion will ostensibly function its new Core Ultra Series 3 processors, and AMD CEO Lisa Su will cowl AMD’s upcoming chip bulletins at a keynote handle that closes out the day. However count on each of them to be very heavy on AI purposes, in fact. Sandwiched in between these chip producers will likely be Sony Honda Mobility. The three way partnership will likely be providing but extra particulars on its Afeela EV.

Lastly, on Tuesday, January 6, Lenovo CEO Yuanqing Yang will host Lenovo’s Tech World Conference on the Las Vegas Sphere, utilizing the massive and decidedly curved display screen to share the corporate’s “dedication to delivering smarter AI for all by continually redefining how know-how can have interaction, encourage, and empower.” It’s price noting that Lenovo is the dad or mum firm of Motorola, which nonetheless makes telephones and foldables that function AI instruments, so it’s potential these units function within the presentation as effectively.

Samsung and LG vie for pre-show publicity

As famous above, each Samsung and LG have continued their latest pattern of spoiling almost all of their respective CES bulletins within the days and weeks earlier than the present. LG, for instance, has mentioned it can debut its first Micro RGB television at CES. Whereas particulars are scarce, the corporate’s press launch for the LG Micro RGB evo did affirm it has acquired certifications by Intertek for one hundred pc colour gamut protection in DCI-P3 an Adobe RGB, and that it has greater than a thousand dimming zones for brightness management.

Elsewhere within the TV area, LG is throwing its hat into the “artwork TV” ring that Samsung pioneered with its Body TVs: The LG Gallery TV will debut in 55- and 65-inch display screen sizes, and it’ll in fact showcase varied art work when it’s not in any other case in use. And if PC gaming shows are extra your pace, LG can have that lined, too, with a brand new line of 5K-capable gaming monitors on deck with built-in AI upscaling.

However LG’s not simply exhibiting off shows. The Korean multinational may also introduce a Dolby-powered modular home audio system, a brand new line of its xboom speakers (developed with will.i.am) and the corporate will flex its automation muscle tissue with a humanoid home automation robot named CLOiD. We’re additionally wanting ahead to trying out the corporate’s new ultralight Aerominum laptops.

In fact, Samsung refuses to be outdone by its hometown rival, and has additionally launched a pre-CES press launch doc dump. Samsung will be launching its own lineup of Micro RGB TVs at CES, for starters. The corporate already launched its first Micro RGB TV at CES 2025, which was a 115-inch mannequin out there for a cool $30,000. Subsequent yr, Samsung is increasing the vary with 55-, 65-, 75-, 85-, 100- and 115-inch fashions that use the following evolution of the corporate’s Micro RGB know-how.

Samsung can be countering LG’s 5K displays with a 6K model that goals to ship glasses-free 3D (one other long-time CES staple). It’ll be considered one of a number of new shows within the firm’s Odyssey gaming line. And the corporate can be updating its Freestyle projector for 2026, too.

And on the audio entrance, Samsung has teased a number of new soundbars and audio system, together with Sonos-style Wi-Fi streaming fashions name the Music Studio 5 and Studio 7.

Outdoors of the formal introduction of recent merchandise and initiatives, studying the tea leaves of what was introduced final yr and what corporations are reportedly engaged on, we will make some educated guesses at what we might see at CES 2026.

New chips from AMD, Intel and Qualcomm

CES is regularly the beginning of a cascade of recent chip bulletins for a given yr, and one of many first locations new silicon seems in actual client merchandise. AMD will seemingly use its keynote to introduce new variations of its Ryzen chips, together with the just lately noticed Ryzen 7 9850X3D, which is predicted to supply higher single-threaded efficiency, and the Ryzen 9000G sequence, which could possibly be constructed with AMD’s Zen 5 structure. The corporate may also use its CES stage to go over its new FSR Redstone AI upscaling tech.

Intel has already publicly announced that it will launch its Panther Lake chips at CES 2026. The formally titled Intel Core Extremely Sequence 3 chips match into Intel’s general “AI PC” push, however are particularly meant for premium laptops. Based mostly on a preview from October 2025, Intel says the primary chip made with its 2-nanometer 18A process will supply 50 % extra processing efficiency than earlier generations and for the chip’s Arc GPU, a 50 % efficiency bump from final era.

Qualcomm can be rumored to be concentrating on laptops on the present, constructing on the work it is completed moving its Snapdragon chips out of telephones and tablets and into different kinds of computer systems. The corporate’s Snapdragon X2 Elite and X2 Elite Premium chips ought to begin showing in laptops at CES 2026, providing a take a look at the improved pace and AI efficiency the corporate promised in 2025.

Brighter, “more true” screens

As famous above, Samsung and LG look like going all-in on Micro RGB show tech for TVs. Anticipate that to be an enormous buzzword at CES, with Hisense and Sony debuting new fashions, too.

Sony introduced a collection of new Bravia TVs in April 2025, changing the corporate’s flagship, filling in its midrange choices and including a brand new price range mannequin to the combo. The star of this up to date Bravia lineup is the Bravia 9, which contains a QD-OLED panel, however Sony seems to be prepping totally new show tech for 2026. In March 2025, Sony launched a brand new RGB LED panel that makes use of particular person Mini LED backlights coloured in crimson, inexperienced and blue to provide even brighter, extra correct colours. In distinction to a QD-OLED, which filters a layer of blue natural gentle emitting diodes via quantum dots that change colour, Sony’s “Normal RGB LED Backlight Expertise” can get as vivid as a Mini LED panel while not having an additional filter layer or worrying about OLED’s issues with burn-in.

The corporate has already trademarked the identify “True RGB,” which might find yourself being what Sony calls this new taste of show if it decides to point out them off at CES. It appears totally seemingly, as a result of CES is nothing if not a TV present — it’s a certain wager that we’ll see new TVs from the likes of LG and Samsung along with Sony. If the corporate does not introduce new show tech for its TVs, it does have a new 240Hz PlayStation monitor coming in 2026 that it might showcase at CES as a substitute.

Sony is not the one firm hyped on vivid screens. Samsung is reportedly pushing an up to date model of the HDR10 and HDR10+ requirements that could possibly be able to demo at CES 2026. The brand new HDR10+ Advanced standard could be Samsung’s reply to Dolby Vision 2, which incorporates assist for issues bi-directional tone mapping and clever options that robotically adapt sports activities and gaming content material. Samsung’s take will reportedly supply improved brightness, genre-based tone mapping and clever movement smoothing choices, amongst different enhancements.

And perhaps your future TV gained’t want an influence wire, both: Displace will likely be exhibiting off a mounting choice that features a 15,000mAh battery to juice up no matter large TV display screen you select to connect.

Ballie Watch 2026

The ball-shaped yellow robotic lovingly generally known as “Ballie” has been introduced twice, first in 2020 after which again in 2024 with a projector in tow. Samsung mentioned Ballie would go on sale in 2025 at CES final yr after which shared in April 2025 that Ballie would ship this summer season with Google’s Gemini onboard. But it surely’s almost 2026, and Ballie is nowhere to be seen. It is potential Samsung might make a 3rd try at asserting its robotic at CES 2026, however whether or not or not it does, robotics will nonetheless be a giant a part of the present.

Robot vacuums and mops have been a serious spotlight of CES 2025, and it is secure to count on notable enhancements from the brand new fashions which can be introduced at CES 2026. Not each firm will undertake the retractable arm of the Roborock Saros Z70, however robotic vacuums with legs for rising over small ledges just like the Dreame X50 appear to be they may develop into the norm. Roborock might additionally showcase its new Roborock Qrevo Curv 2 Flow, the primary of its robotic vacuums to function a retractable curler mop.

Past simply traversing areas extra effectively, bettering robots’ navigation may be a serious concern on the present. Prominent members of the AI business are turning their consideration from giant language fashions to world models, which purpose to present AI a deep understanding of bodily area. These world fashions could possibly be the important thing to creating robots — like LG’s aforementioned CLOiD — competent at navigating properties and workplaces, and can seemingly be a big speaking level at CES 2026.

We’ll be updating this text all through the month as extra rumors floor and new merchandise are confirmed — keep tuned for future updates!

Replace, December 11 2025, 11:03AM ET: This story has been up to date to incorporate element on Lenovo being Motorola’s dad or mum firm and the way the latter may need an element within the Tuesday presentation.

Replace, December 16 2025, 1:33PM ET: This story has been up to date to incorporate the NVIDIA press convention, which was added to the CTA schedule inside the final two days.

Replace, December 23 2025, 7:28AM ET: This story has been up to date to incorporate LG and Samsung’s Micro RGB TV bulletins, which have been made public prior to now seven days. The intro was additionally tweaked to replicate how quickly CES is at this level.

Replace, December 29 2025, 11:03AM ET: This story has been up to date to incorporate extra particulars on pre-announcements from Samsung, LG and Displace.

Replace, December 31 2025, 12:05PM ET: This story has been up to date to incorporate but extra early LG bulletins.

Replace, January 3 2026, 8:45AM ET: This story has been up to date to incorporate nonetheless extra Samsung and LG bulletins.