i3 - January/February 2021 - 2

From the CEO

2021

New Beginnings
For my entire professional life, every year has
begun with CES.
CES is our celebration of the New Year. It is the
tech world's place where optimism, hope and innovation combine. It is where we gather, celebrate,
discover, share and grow our businesses.
Every CES has been different and amazing and
CES 2021 is even more unique! We had to reimagine
the event to shift from the physical world to the digital world. We had to figure out how the big news,
speakers, panels, products, services, meetings,
excitement and even serendipity could be accessible
to our industry members wherever they may be.
We analyzed existing event platforms and found
many simply tried to recreate exhibits online and use
human avatars. We took a different approach and
focused on the core of CES - the innovation and the
connections. By partnering with Microsoft, we
hoped to preserve the conversations, meetings and
discovery and give each exhibitor an opportunity to
share the best version of themselves - and to meet
directly with their clients and potential customers as
well as media. We also activated opportunities for
keyword search of product announcements, news,
awards, conferences and keynotes. And we will keep
CES exhibitors and speakers on the platform long
after the actual show dates.
By going digital we, are able to reach new audiences around the globe. For years we had heard
from so many would-be attendees who couldn't get
to Las Vegas. Now, we hope many more will be able
to experience CES. CES 2021 is truly worldwide!
Another benefit of going digital is that we weren't
bound by the dates that Las Vegas had scheduled for
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JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2021

i3_0121_02_FOB_CeoLetter.indd 2

It is not the
strongest or
fastest who
survive, it is
those who can
adapt the
quickest.
- Charles Darwin

us. So, we shifted CES to be a week later,
giving attendees some breathing room to
prepare after the holiday season.
We are thrilled with the response we
have gotten to the decisions we have
made, from the early decision to go all
digital, to the exhibitor platforms we
offered, to our partnership with
Microsoft. When top companies like
AMD and P&G say they will use CES
2021 to launch products, we are excited!
I am proud of our team that has led us
on this journey. Everyone had to rethink
their role for CES, and many had to
learn new skills.
I am also proud of our industry for
responding and supporting this transformation. Many had hoped CES would be
the first time since March we could connect face-to-face with our partners and
our customers. But when we determined
it was not going to be safe to do that, they
pivoted to the all-digital experience.
I am even prouder of our industry for
helping the world's citizens stay connected, informed, educated and even
healthy during this horrible pandemic.
Telework, telemedicine and tele-education have kept us moving forward. I simply can't imagine where we would be if
this pandemic occurred a generation ago
before all of this amazing connectivity.
To paraphrase Charles Darwin, " It is
not the strongest or fastest who survive,
it is those who can adapt the quickest. "
Our industry has adapted and provided
the tools people need to stay connected,
productive and healthy.
CES has adapted. It will not be the
same experience. In some ways it will be
better. The five-sense experience of a live
physical event is tough to replace, and
we plan to combine the best of both
physical and digital at CES 2022.
So, make sure you check out CES
2021 and let us know how we can be
better for 2022.
In the meantime, I wish you and all of
yours a wonderful and healthy 2021!

Gary Shapiro,
President and CEO
I T I S I N N O VAT I O N

12/9/20 3:05 PM

https://ces.tech/

i3 - January/February 2021

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