AI Turned up in the Most Unusual Places at CES

There was never a question that artificial intelligence (AI) would be center stage at CES in 2024. The explosion of interest in generative AI in the past year guaranteed a flood of new products.

What was surprising, however, was the diversity. AI was pretty much everywhere at the show. It was incorporated into everything from grills to cars. While there were, of course, any number of useless integrations of the technology into products, there were several examples that made sense and, in some cases, were just plain cool.

Here’s a look at some of the AI products at this year’s show that turned our head.

Anura MagicMirror

AI and healthcare go hand in hand, but this mirror from NuraLogix analyzes the blood flow in your face to gauge vital measurements, such as blood pressure and stress levels. Rather than aiming the product at consumers, NuraLogix plans to market this to businesses like gyms and clinics. As the technology matures, though, home integration is not out of the realm of consideration, especially as telemedicine continues to evolve and grow.

AI Laptops

Several PC manufacturers were showing off examples of AI-equipped laptops, with chips that handle AI workloads efficiently. It acts, in some cases, as a device that handles background tasks that allow your laptop to run more efficiently, such as taking over small tasks that might typically slow down your CPU or GPU or assisting with photo and video editing. And some Dell laptops will have a key you can press to call up an AI companion that summarizes documents or helps to create generative images.

Cappella’s baby cry translator

One of the biggest frustrations of new parents is trying to figure out what their newborn needs when he or she is crying. Cappella claims its technology is 95% accurate in deciphering whether the baby is too hot, too cold, hungry or other distresses. Diaper change needs, you can probably figure out without an AI assistant.

Samsung’s 8K QLED TVs.

With 4K still the dominant technology for televisions, manufacturers are kind of in a holding pattern, adding bells and whistles that are kind of cool, but not exactly necessary—and unlikely to make people rush out to buy a new set. But Samsung is doing something interesting with its QLED models, adding AI upscaling that will convert standard definition content into 8K resolution. The sets will also switch TV modes based on the type of content being played, optimizing the picture quality. It’s an interesting way to showcase how vivid 8K can be—and to update older programs.

DeRUCCI T11 Pro Smart Mattress

Beds seem the last device that needs artificial intelligence, but DeRUCCI made a strong case for the inclusion with this mattress that includes 23 sleep/health sensors that track your movement, body temperature, heart rate and more. The bed will them respond to your movement and position, best supporting your head and spine and (ideally) ensuring a good night’s sleep.

Guidi AI smart belt

Using both AI and haptic feedback, this belt looks to help people with vision problems navigate the world. Using two wide angle lenses, it scans upcoming surroundings as far as 16 feet ahead, using AI to analyze the video in real time. The belt then warns the wearer via sound and haptic alerts when they’re approaching an obstacle.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.