Insider View: Unveiling the Pioneering Technological Trends Predicted for CES in 2025
Iri Trashanski, serving as the Chief Strategy Officer at Ceva, is instrumental in shaping the future of the Smart Edge with her extensive experience spanning various tech sectors.
Every New Year sees the tech world fixated on Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), which has morphed into the tech world's equivalent of the Super Bowl. Companies compete to set trends, introduce new products, and establish their presence in the industry, with CES serving as a launchpad. A significant portion of the innovation driving excitement in this sector relies on third-party IP, providing companies like mine with a front-row view of the innovations embedded in next-generation consumer electronics.
Beneath the spotlight-stealing consumer brands that command headlines at CES lies a multifaceted ecosystem of technology enablers. These companies, often unnoticed by consumers, contribute significantly to driving innovation, imbuing CES with its intrigue and awe through their groundbreaking technology that lends new dimensions of pleasure, safety, security, and efficiency to end-users.
Employing a company such as this provides an unparalleled vantage point regarding the future of technology products, sometimes several years prior to their CES debut. The following is my "insider's perspective" on significant trends reflected at the 2025 CES event and the implications for the industry's trajectory.
AI Everywhere
AI has been a buzzword in the tech sphere, with AI now extending its reach beyond the cloud and into the hands of end-users. This shift is evident in AI PCs and smartphones with embedded AI capabilities, marking the first step of this trend.
AI, scaled down to specific use-cases and optimized for lightweight usage, will make its presence felt in our homes, offices, automobiles, and wearables, resulting in more customized services and contextually aware features. This new era, where our devices become smarter, is being heralded as the "smart edge," requiring different silicon and software technology than cloud-based AI to make it practical.
Expanding and Unifying Wireless Connectivity
The smart edge relies on connectivity to fully realize its potential, either through 5G networks or Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or other short-range protocols. Soon, we will witness advancements in wireless connectivity, leading to more robust and reliable ways of connecting to the internet and other devices. Existing standards, such as Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth LE, and 801.15.4, will continually evolve, with improved interoperability between differing standards.
Initiatives like Thread and Matter aim to break down the barriers between proprietary implementations, ensuring seamless communication between various devices, such as security systems (Brand A), climate control systems (Brand B), and refrigerators (Brand C). Silicon technology, capable of integrating multiple standards on a single "combo" chip, will play a crucial role in enabling this trend while also addressing critical cost, size, and power requirements.
Revolutionizing the Mobility Experience
Two key trends sustain the spotlight in vehicle technology: electrification and autonomy. Although progress has been incremental, we anticipate significant strides in both areas, owing to advances in embedded computing technology. This includes battery management systems, extended EV range with low-power devices, V2X platforms for increased driver and passenger awareness, and safety features that improve accuracy in detecting potential issues before they materialize.
Transforming the Mobility Experience Beyond Connectivity: Wireless Sensing
Wireless technology has traditionally focused on connection, but new techniques for utilizing different wireless spectrums for motion sensing are becoming increasingly popular. One intriguing development to watch out for is ultra-wideband (UWB), a wireless communication technology. Unlike narrowband or Wi-Fi technologies that employ specific frequency bands, UWB transmits data through various frequency ranges, enabling precise location tracking, high-speed data transmission, and minimal interference with other signals.
Various use-cases for UWB abound, such as asset tracking, directional communication, and secure access control, where keyless entry becomes possible. One life-saving application is child presence detection, now mandated in Europe and gaining traction in the United States. UWB detects children in the back seat, signaling when it is safe to leave the car. Furthermore, thanks to UWB's centimeter-level accuracy, it can perceive when children are in the front seat, triggering the disablement of the passenger airbag.
Conclusion
These examples of breakthrough technologies revolutionizing everyday products are a testament to the creative potential of CES. The convergence of several innovations, such as advanced connectivity, smarter sensing, and powerful AI, is reshaping how we interact with technology, redefining the smart edge.
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In the context of the smart edge, Iri Trashanski's extensive experience in various tech sectors significantly contributes to integrating AI into everyday devices, such as smartphones and wearables.
The emergence of Thread and Matter initiatives aims to unify wireless connectivity, allowing seamless communication between various devices, like security systems, climate control systems, and refrigerators, helping to overcome barriers posed by proprietary implementations.
