Last Updated on February 2, 2026 by Daily News Staff

CES 2026 (Jan. 6–9 in Las Vegas) didn’t feel like a “future tech” show as much as a “right now” show. The big shift: AI wasn’t treated like a standalone product category anymore. It was the invisible layer powering everything from streaming discovery to robots that can actually do work.

For STM Daily News readers who live in the overlap of Entertainment and Tech, here are the exhibitors and trends that stood out most—plus why they matter beyond the show floor.

1) Sony Honda Mobility (AFEELA): The car as a rolling entertainment platform

Sony Honda Mobility’s AFEELA presence reinforced a direction CES keeps leaning into: the next generation of vehicles is competing as much on software and in-cabin experience as it is on horsepower.

What made it stand out:

• AFEELA represents the “car as a connected device” idea taken seriously—where the cabin becomes a screen-first, service-driven environment.
• It’s a clean example of how mobility and entertainment are merging: navigation, safety, personalization, and media all living in one interface.

2) Netflix + Amazon Prime Video + Roku + Xumo: Streaming is evolving into ecosystems

CES 2026’s Content & Entertainment story wasn’t about “who has the most subscribers.” It was about streaming as an ecosystem: bundling, ad-supported growth, and smarter discovery.

What made it stand out:

• CES highlighted how streaming platforms are pushing beyond simple libraries into bundles, premium originals, and integrated experiences.
• FAST (free ad-supported streaming TV) continues to gain traction, and device/platform players are positioning themselves as the front door.

3) Dolby: The quiet power behind the best-looking, best-sounding experiences

Dolby isn’t always the flashiest booth, but it consistently shows up as the tech that makes everything else feel “premium.”

What made it stand out:

• In a year where screens, XR, and immersive venues are everywhere, audio and imaging standards are the difference between “cool demo” and “wow.”
• Dolby’s relevance keeps growing as entertainment moves across phones, living rooms, cars, and wearables.

4) Meta + XREAL: Smart glasses keep inching toward mainstream

Wearables at CES 2026 weren’t just about steps and sleep. The momentum was in smart glasses and AR—especially as generative AI voice interfaces make hands-free use feel more natural.

What made it stand out:

• CES noted smart/AR glasses evolving with features like real-time translation, recording, and AI voice interfaces.
• For entertainment fans, this is where “watching” and “doing” start to blend—live overlays, creator tools, and new ways to capture experiences.

5) Samsung + LG + TCL: Screens are still the show’s main stage

Even in an AI-everywhere year, CES still belongs to display tech. Big brands kept proving that TVs aren’t just TVs—they’re hubs for gaming, streaming, smart home control, and ambient experiences.

What made it stand out:

• Display leaders continue to set the tone for how entertainment is consumed at home.
• The conversation is shifting from specs to experience: personalization, AI-powered recommendations, and multi-device continuity.

6) NVIDIA + AMD + Lenovo: The “AI PC” era is no longer theoretical

CES 2026 made it clear that the next wave of consumer computing is built around on-device AI. That matters for creators, editors, and anyone who lives in content.

What made it stand out:

• CES highlighted AI’s move from “digital transformation” to “intelligent transformation,” including edge/enterprise and physical AI in robotics.
• AMD’s CES keynote emphasized AI across devices from PCs to data centers, underscoring how quickly this is becoming standard.

7) Unitree + Richtech Robotics + Hyundai: Robots were the surprise crowd-pleaser

If CES 2026 had a “you had to see it” category, it was robotics. Not just novelty bots—machines built for real environments.

What made it stand out:

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• CES framed robotics as “physical AI,” where generative AI and simulation training help robots learn faster than traditional programming.
• Humanoid robots, in particular, are moving from single-task demos toward more collaborative assistant roles.

The big takeaway for STM Daily News readers

CES 2026 wasn’t about one killer gadget. It was about convergence:

• Entertainment is becoming more interactive, more personalized, and more portable.
• Cars are becoming screens.
• Wearables are becoming interfaces.
• Robots are becoming the next “device category” people actually want to watch.

And underneath it all: AI is becoming less of a headline and more of the operating system for modern life.

Here’s a list of what stood out to us at CES 2026:

• Sony Honda Mobility (AFEELA): The car as a rolling entertainment platform
• Netflix + Amazon Prime Video + Roku + Xumo: Streaming is evolving into ecosystems
• Dolby: The quiet power behind the best-looking, best-sounding experiences
• Meta + XREAL: Smart glasses keep inching toward mainstream
• Samsung + LG + TCL: Screens are still the show’s main stage
• NVIDIA + AMD + Lenovo: The “AI PC” era is no longer theoretical
• Unitree + Richtech Robotics + Hyundai: Robots were the surprise crowd-pleaser

Sources

• CES press release recap and exhibitor/topic highlights (Jan. 9, 2026): https://www.ces.tech/press-releases/ces-2026-the-future-is-here

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Spatial filmmaking is having a moment—but at CES 2026, the more interesting story wasn’t a glossy trailer or a perfectly controlled demo. It was the workflow.

According to a recent GIGABYTE press release, VR filmmaker and educator Hugh Hou ran a live spatial computing demonstration inside the GIGABYTE suite, walking attendees through how immersive video is actually produced in real-world conditions—capture to post to playback—without leaning on pre-rendered “best case scenario” content. In other words: not theory, not a lab. A production pipeline, running live, on a show floor.

A full spatial pipeline—executed live

The demo gave attendees a front-row view of a complete spatial filmmaking pipeline:

• Capture
• Post-production
• Final playback across multiple devices

And the key detail here is that the workflow was executed live at CES—mirroring the same processes used in commercial XR projects. That matters because spatial video isn’t forgiving. Once you’re working in 360-degree environments (and pushing into 8K), you’re no longer just chasing “fast.” You’re chasing:

• System stability
• Performance consistency
• Thermal reliability

Those are the unsexy requirements that make or break actual production days.

Playback across Meta Quest, Apple Vision Pro, and Galaxy XR

The session culminated with attendees watching a two-minute spatial film trailer across:

• Meta Quest
• Apple Vision Pro
• Newly launched Galaxy XR headsets
• Plus a 3D tablet display offering an additional 180-degree viewing option

That multi-device playback is a quiet flex. Spatial content doesn’t live in one ecosystem anymore—creators are being pulled toward cross-platform deliverables, which adds even more pressure on the pipeline to stay clean and consistent.

Where AI fits (when it’s not the headline)

One of the better notes in the release: AI wasn’t positioned as a shiny feature. It was framed as what it’s becoming for a lot of editors—an embedded toolset that speeds up the grind without hijacking the creative process.

In the demo, AI-assisted processes supported tasks like:

• Enhancement
• Tracking
• Preview workflows

The footage moved through industry-standard software—Adobe Premiere Pro and DaVinci Resolve—with AI-based:

• Upscaling
• Noise reduction
• Detail refinement

And in immersive VR, those steps aren’t optional polish. Any artifact, softness, or weird noise pattern becomes painfully obvious when the viewer can look anywhere.

Why the hardware platform matters for spatial workloads

Underneath the demo was a custom-built GIGABYTE AI PC designed for sustained spatial video workloads. Per the release, the system included:

• AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor
• Radeon AI PRO R9700 AI TOP GPU
• X870E AORUS MASTER X3D ICE motherboard

The point GIGABYTE is making is less “look at these parts” and more: spatial computing workloads demand a platform that can run hard continuously—real-time 8K playback and rendering—without throttling, crashing, or drifting into inconsistent performance.

That’s the difference between “cool demo” and “reliable production machine.”

The bigger takeaway: spatial filmmaking is moving from experiment to repeatable process

By running a demanding spatial filmmaking workflow live—and repeatedly—at CES 2026, GIGABYTE is positioning spatial production as something creators can depend on, not just test-drive.

And that’s the shift worth watching in 2026: spatial filmmaking isn’t just about headsets getting better. It’s about the behind-the-scenes pipeline becoming stable enough that creators can treat immersive production like a real, repeatable craft—because the tools finally hold up under pressure.

Source:PRNewswire – GIGABYTE press release

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LUMISTAR wrapped up its CES 2026 debut in Las Vegas with record-level attention, as live demos of its AI-powered sports training systems consistently drew full crowds throughout the show, according to the company.

The sports-focused AI brand showcased TERO, its AI tennis training system, and CARRY, its AI basketball training system—both described by attendees as “game changers” for how training can be delivered, measured, and scaled.

Why the Booth Stayed Packed

Across multiple days of hands-on demonstrations, LUMISTAR’s booth became a focal point for athletes, coaches, club operators, and sports technology professionals. Visitors repeatedly pointed to one key difference: the systems don’t just record results—they actively participate in training.

That’s a major break from the standard model in sports tech, where:

• traditional ball machines run pre-set drills, and
• wearables/video tools analyze performance after a session ends.

Training That Adapts in Real Time

LUMISTAR says both TERO and CARRY combine real-time computer vision, adaptive decision-making, and on-court execution to respond instantly to athlete behavior—adjusting difficulty, tempo, and training logic shot by shot.

Attendees noted that this turns practice from repetition into something closer to competition—an evolving back-and-forth between athlete and system.

“This is not an incremental improvement—it’s a complete rethink of what training equipment should do,” one professional coach attending CES said in the release. “For the first time, the machine is reacting to the athlete, not the other way around.”

From Data Collection to Action

Another standout point from CES feedback: the platform’s focus on turning performance data into immediate training outcomes.

LUMISTAR’s approach emphasizes:

• continuous data retention across sessions
• real-time performance interpretation
• clear visualization of progress and training efficiency

Coaches and athletes highlighted that this could reduce wasted training time and accelerate skill development by making each session measurable and comparable.

What’s Next: Pre-Orders and Kickstarter

LUMISTAR outlined a 2026 rollout plan following CES:

• TERO opens for pre-orders in March 2026, with full market availability beginning May 2026
• CARRY launches via Kickstarter in Q2 2026
• The company will continue private demonstrations and pilot programs with select training institutions worldwide ahead of commercial release

More information is available at https://www.lumistar.ai.

Source: PRNewswire press release from LUMISTAR (Jan. 11, 2026)

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