What to expect at CES 2026: laptops with new chips from Intel, Qualcomm, and AMD, more AI integrations, smart home robotics, smart glasses, and more
Expect plenty of laptops, smart home tech, and TVs — and lots of robots. — The biggest tech show of the year kicks off next week …
Context & Ripple Effects
CES previews have increasingly paired new compute platforms with AI-enabled consumer devices: CES 2024’s Core Ultra laptop and AI-device focus was followed by CES 2025’s AI TVs and Nvidia-based laptop cycle. The 2026 preview broadens that pattern across Intel, Qualcomm, and AMD while extending it into home robotics and smart glasses.
First-order effects
- Intel, Qualcomm, and AMD will compete for laptop-maker and CES-attendee attention around their respective new chip platforms, rather than leaving the laptop narrative centered on a single supplier.
- Device makers are expected to present AI integrations, smart-home robotics, and smart glasses alongside conventional laptop and TV launches, making on-device experiences a central part of product positioning.
Second-order effects
- Laptop OEMs will face sharper comparisons among chip platforms on the AI features they enable, pushing differentiation beyond traditional form factors and display specifications.
- Smart-home vendors will have added incentive to frame robotics as part of a broader connected-device experience, not as a standalone category.
Third-order effects
- If this CES pattern continues, consumer-device launches will increasingly be organized around the combination of specialized compute and embedded AI experiences across PCs, homes, and wearables.
- The growing overlap of PC chips, home devices, and glasses suggests competition may shift toward cross-device integration; whether products deliver durable utility remains unproven at the preview stage.
The trend: CES is becoming a recurring showcase for heterogeneous AI compute spreading from laptops into ambient, connected consumer devices.