Topline
Generative AI was front and center among the unique gadgets unveiled at this year’s CES in Las Vegas—following big trends that dominated in previous years, including the metaverse, voice assistants and connected home devices.
Key Facts
AI software startup Capella showed off an app—which will cost users $10 per month to access—that claims to use AI to “translate” a baby’s cries with “95% accuracy” and tell if they are hungry, in need of a diaper change, or uncomfortable.
For cat owners whose felines love carrying dead mice into their homes, Swiss startup Flappie showed off an AI-powered cat door that the company claims will lock your pet outdoors unless it drops any dead animal in its mouth; the product costs $525 (CHF 450).
For people who want AI to help with their snoring, Chinese company DeRucci unveiled an $8300 mattress and a $1000 pillow that claims it can fix the problem by using airbags to reposition a person’s body and head.
British startup Seergrills debuted their $3,500 Perfecta grill, which the company claims uses AI to cook the perfect steaks and other meat in 90 seconds—although the version shown off at CES was not cooking any actual meat, according to CNET.
Volkswagen was among several companies at CES this year that chose to integrate the most popular generative AI product, ChatGPT, into their devices, with the carmaker adding the OpenAI tool to its in-car voice assistant, IDA.
Several other products, including a smart toothbrush, a mirror that claims to boost people’s mood and a $4,700 pair of binoculars that can identify birds and animals in its sight were also onboard the AI hype.
What To Watch For
It is unclear how many of the products unveiled at CES will be released to the public and how many will be able to sustain their service offerings. Weird tech chasing the latest trends is a staple of CES events every year but very few of the off-beat concepts turn into products with wide availability and even fewer manage to have any longevity.
Tangent
A group of advocates for privacy, right-to-repair and consumer rights labelled BMW and Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant—which is being integrated into the company’s cars—as CES 2024’s worst device for privacy. The integration will allow users to control their car using the voice assistant. Cindy Cohn, executive director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said the technology enables “creepy tracking” and brings with it “the potential for domestic abuse.” Cohn claimed people fleeing abusive relationships could be targeted by their partners using this technology.