{"id":4278141,"date":"2025-01-17T10:41:33","date_gmt":"2025-01-17T08:41:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.deptagency.com\/?post_type=article&p=4278141"},"modified":"2025-03-27T14:31:26","modified_gmt":"2025-03-27T12:31:26","slug":"ces-2025-ai-sustainability-and-the-future-of-consumer-tech","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.deptagency.com\/en-uki\/insight\/ces-2025-ai-sustainability-and-the-future-of-consumer-tech\/","title":{"rendered":"CES 2025: AI, sustainability, and the future of consumer tech"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t\n\t<\/svg>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tBack to all articles\t\t<\/span>\n\t\n<\/button>\n\t\tCES 2025: AI, sustainability, and the future of consumer tech\t<\/h1>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/picture>\n\t\n\t<\/div>
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\n\t\tJon Judah\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t17 January 2025\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\tEach January, CES gives us a glimpse into the tech and innovations that will impact businesses and consumers in the year ahead.<\/p>\n\tCES 2025 had an obvious focus on all things AI, but also sustainability and the evolving landscape of digital learning and communication.

Spending time in the exhibition halls is one of the best ways to immerse yourself in everything CES has to offer. But if you\u2019ve ever set foot on the CES show floor, you know it\u2019s a mix of pure chaos, groundbreaking innovation, and products that will likely never see the light of day but look cool.

So, what are the takeaways amidst all of the chaos? Our DEPT\u00ae team spent several days hosting clients for tours of the exhibits at the Las Vegas Convention Centre, and we gathered up a few hot takes along the way.

Here\u2019s our amateur tour guide\u2019s take on CES 2025 and what it might mean for consumer brands.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/picture>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\t\u2018Everyday AI\u2019: A hammer looking for nails<\/h2>\n\tSmart fridges and washing machines have become something of a meme<\/a> at CES in recent years, yet the big household electronics brands – from the usual suspects of LG and Samsung to more recent challengers like HiSense and TCL – all leaned hard into how their AI-infused products can do things you didn\u2019t know you needed to be done in your home (and probably don\u2019t).

From LG\u2019s \u201caffectionate intelligence<\/a>\u201d offering wellness insights to TCL\u2019s child-friendly AiMe<\/a> robot, these products aim to integrate seamlessly into daily life but still potentially toe the \u2018creep\u2019 line.

While these innovations might remove some daily friction, they also raise questions about whether brands are prioritising speed to market over meaningful user research, which has been on the decline<\/a> in recent years as a result of shrinking budgets and pressures to ship products.

As design thinking fades from vogue, a renewed focus on understanding human needs is more critical than ever.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\tA golden era of learning?<\/h2>\n\tCES 2025 highlighted the intersection of digital learning and physical applications, with NVIDIA\u2019s Jensen Huang introducing robot training<\/a> in the metaverse and brands like Dassault<\/a> and BHaptics<\/a> showcasing advanced digital twins and sensory feedback technologies.

Innovations like haptic devices that simulate real-world sensations suggest a future where learning trades or practical skills becomes more accessible and engaging, addressing the growing trade gap<\/a> and putting real substance behind how we use digital to train for the physical world.

For marketers, this signals a continued shift toward education-focused strategies that establish authority for machines to learn from you, whether that\u2019s via summaries in search, offering AI-driven tutorials, virtual workshops, and skill-building content to foster brand loyalty and organic growth.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\tThe race to replace your phone<\/h2>\n\tExhibitors at CES 2025 showcased Meta-like glasses and Oura-style wearables, all vying to break our smartphone dependency. Oura and Meta succeed by focusing on unique, high-value experiences (and yes, that first mover advantage and those network effects); Oura with precise health tracking and Meta with immersive VR\/AR for both entertainment and work.

While no game-changing form factor has emerged, brands like XREAL<\/a>, with AR glasses for autonomous vehicles, and AARP-funded innovators like Xander<\/a>, with real-time subtitle tech for the hearing impaired, are finding niche applications.

Marketers should explore reframing XR\/AR as tools for solving specific problems and leveraging partnerships to extend these technologies’ utility and appeal.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\tOut-of-home meets in-your-car\u00a0<\/h2>\n\tElectric\/autonomous vehicles were a major focus at CES, with exhibitors reimagining car interiors as media-rich environments. LG offered personalised dashboards, while BMW\u2019s minimalist iDrive<\/a> and Sony-Honda\u2019s Afeela<\/a> EV highlighted immersive, AI-powered interfaces.

For marketers, the car is poised to become a multimedia hub, transitioning from audio-driven content today to shared, screen-centric (or even holographic) experiences tomorrow, creating new opportunities to engage consumers on the go.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\tSustainability\u2019s coming-out party<\/p>\n\tSustainability took centre stage at CES 2025, with innovations like Flint\u2019s<\/a> paper-based batteries, Siemens\u2019 sand-to-soil technology,<\/a> and LowCarbon\u2019s<\/a> carbon-filtering \u201ctrees.\u201d This shift toward tangible, impactful solutions emphasizes the importance of showcasing measurable sustainability efforts.

For marketers, this means weaving real-world advancements into campaigns to resonate with eco-conscious consumers and position brands as leaders in tackling environmental challenges.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\t\n\t
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<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\t\n\tSo, there you have it\u2014a big portion of CES 2025 in a nutshell. It was a whirlwind of AI gadgets, eco-friendly innovations, and tech that promises to change how we learn and communicate. While some of these products might seem like solutions in search of a problem, others could genuinely reshape our daily lives.

The key word there is could. Our mindset throughout CES focused on how the future is being brought into practical application today.\u00a0

The potential of these innovations was prevalent throughout the show floor, but finding practical applications that solve real, immediate problems is what brands really need right now.

Brands need to keep their eyes on the prize: <\/strong>understanding what people really need and want, and not just assume everything everywhere is a friction people want or need removed in their lives.\u00a0

As we move forward, the challenge will be to balance the shiny allure of new tech with the practicalities of everyday life in ways that keep tech in the background but still relevant. Whether it’s AI that actually makes a difference, learning tools that bridge the skills gap, or sustainable solutions that walk the talk, the future is all about making tech work for us\u2014not the other way around.\u00a0<\/p><\/div>\n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n
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