Smart City, Songdo International City and the Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ). 

Image by Aidin Geranrekab

AI dominated CES 2025 as a marketing tool, though its intangible nature poses challenges compared to past trends like robotics, drones, and home entertainment, writes Don Southerton.

This week in Branding in Asia

By Don Southerton

I’m back in Colorado after spending a week at CES in Las Vegas. I’ve collected my thoughts on this year’s CES show and would like to share them with you.

CES is the most influential technology event in the world, serving as a proving ground for groundbreaking technologies and global innovators. Thousands of exhibitors, media representatives, and industry professionals attend this trade show in Las Vegas every year.

In short, much of the buzz surrounding CES 2025 focused on AI. I was chatting with a long-time colleague from the automotive industry who visited our Incheon-IFEZ booth, where I spent most of my time. I pointed out that we were specifically located in the AI section. After a day of exploring the CES pavilions, he commented, “Don, the whole show is AI.”

I did come to the show with some insights.

Of the 41 businesses from South Korea hosted by the City of Incheon and the Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ), I supported their market entry plans, reviewed their websites, and improved the Korean translations into English. Most of them included AI in their branding or used “AI-enabled” in their product descriptions.

Of the 41 South Korean businesses hosted by Incheon and IFEZ, most featured AI in their branding or product descriptions.

For instance, tech media outlet The Vertical highlighted one of our top brand choices, Sheco. This all-in-one recovery robot is designed to address various water pollutants, including small-scale oil spills, algae, and container dust. Sheco also provides software and support equipment options such as autonomous driving, water monitoring, AI-powered cameras, and a control dashboard.

This reference to AI was the trend throughout the show and was this year’s attention grabber as a marketing tool. However, I feel it often presents a challenge to showcase AI since it is invisible. I have observed this less with products in the past when robotics and drones captured attendees’ interest because they were more tangible and visual, and more so over the years when home entertainment and the latest widescreens dominated.

It’s no surprise that Tech Buzz reports a significant portion of 2024’s largest investment deals went to AI-focused companies, with nearly a third of all global venture funding directed toward AI-related sectors.

Upon closer examination, AI emphasizes the transformative potential of artificial intelligence. As demonstrated at CES, it spans applications in every consumer tech category and across the 4,000+ exhibiting companies worldwide.

I expect that at next year’s CES, we will see more advancements in AI as the technology evolves and continues to capture attendees’ interest.

Don Southerton provides strategy, consulting, and training to Korea-based global businesses.

Source: https://www.brandinginasia.com/ces-2025-yes-it-was-all-about-ai/