Since 2023, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority's Legacy Campus is undergoing a significant transformation with a $600 million renovation that is nearing completion. The project aims to extend the contemporary design, architecture, and customer experience of the West Hall. Construction on the North and South Halls has been completed, while work on the Central Hall continues and is set to conclude in December 2025.
This fully renovated LVCC creates a huge opportunity for CES to recenter its activities around a more traditional exhibition space, being able to accommodate more exhibitors in a single location. While the new West Hall inaugurated in 2022 has been quickly embraced by the fast-growing sector of CES, automotive and mobility, this could now shift and expand to the renovated North and Center halls, traditionally surrounded by large open spaces that are ideal for outside exhibits and automotive showcases.
But that is assuming that exhibitor numbers for CES 2026 will remain at the 2025 levels and expand in area, which is certainly not a given under the current political circumstances in the United States, and geopolitical tensions created by the Trump tariffs being a strong disincentive for many trade pavilions and countries that traditionally promote large delegations. While the interest from many suppliers and technology companies who see CES as the largest and most important business-to-business (B2B) opportunity of the year is likely to remain strong, those companies don't traditionally take large booths at the LVCC, opting to remain at the Venetian Expo or even in private suites. This trend has created a strong challenge for the CTA to readjust the profile of the show, without generating the sense that the exhibition is getting smaller. But it seems clear that the final result in 2026 is not under the control of the CTA, and that until the end of the year many things might even change.
In 2025, amongst the 142,465 attendees (audited), 57,401 traveled from outside the US. Adding that a large majority of the 4500+ exhibitors are companies from abroad, the risk of a diminished international participation is a significant challenge for the promoters. That is, if it wasn't that in reality the largest impact of this show is in fact in the global media coverage that it generates and its significance in kicking off the technology trends for a new year.
"From groundbreaking innovations that improve lives to transformative ideas that redefine industries, CES is a celebration of the art of the possible, showcasing how technology enriches our world and inspires a brighter future for all," adds Kinsey Fabrizio, President, CTA.
As one of the most transparent trade shows, CES adheres to rigorous auditing standards established by UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry. To maintain the integrity of its reports, CES engages independent auditors, fostering trust among stakeholders. "CES reaffirms its status as the largest audited annual business event," adds Fabrizio.
Trending topics for 2025 that will return in 2026 include Artificial Intelligence, Digital Health, and Mobility. Sectors that were highlighted in 2025, such as Energy Transition and Sustainability, will return but in much more discreet form, unless it is to promote oil, coal, and nuclear reactors, or to promote investments in infrastructure in the United States. The independently audited data for CES 2025 also revealed that attendance interested in digital health, entertainment, and advertising grew by 13% and 11%, respectively.
Many startups are naturally eager to present themselves at the Eureka Park - which in 2025 was again completely full with 1400 startups from 39 countries, including country pavilions representing Africa, European Union (EU), France, Italy, Israel, Japan, Korea, Netherlands, Switzerland, and Ukraine. That is very likely not going to happen again, with many of these countries having removed their official support or even issuing advisories against traveling to the US. This should not discourage entrepreneurs from risking visiting CES and maybe using the opportunity to promote some visits and presentations in Silicon Valley immediately after, as it has been increasingly the tradition.
In 2025, the CTA promoted an interesting Innovation Policy Summit, bringing together policymakers and government guests from around the world to discuss domestic and global tech policy issues, including AI, privacy, trade, competition, and more. This will likely be the only way to ensure the presence of foreign government officials at CES, but from a reduced number of countries.
According to the CTA, tariffs should strongly impact US consumer purchasing power of technology up to $143 billion, from the $537 billion sales forecasted for technology in the US until the end of 2025. Products that consumers love and rely upon, including smartphones and laptops, are threatened by Trump's tariffs - Purchases of laptops and tablets could decline by as much as 68%, while consumption of gaming consoles could decline by as much as 58%. Smartphones could decline by up to 37%.
CES 2026 registration is now open. audioXpress will continuously update this story as the CTA confirms details about CES 2026.
www.cta.tech
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