CES 2026 Day 4: The Big Finish
- Adam Bernard
- Jan 13
- 3 min read
My last day at CES allowed me to learn about some intriguing new technologies and spend some time on the show floor as well (and check out some actual new cars!) ...
HERE is probably the biggest brand in mapping you’ve never heard of. This 40-year-old company boasts almost 240 million vehicles shipped with HERE data and solutions and claims over 3,500 patents. Their technology underlies the navigation systems in many automakers, allowing each automaker to build its own brand-specific experience. And, although much of their work is automotive, their clients also include DHL, Accenture, Verizon, and Microsoft, and numerous non-automotive businesses. They are, not surprisingly, very active in supporting the development of software-defined vehicles, and their announcements here included a new navigation experience for motorcyclists (partnered with Pioneer), and an AI-powered navigation solution in collaboration with Amazon’s new Alexa+.
You might recall that, over ten years ago, iconic vacuum-cleaner manufacturer Dyson attempted to enter the EV space. That £2.5 billion effort failed, but that didn’t deter Chinese household appliance manufacturer Dreame from announcing plans to launch a range of premium EVs in 2027. Last year, they unveiled an homage to (or rip-off of) the Rolls-Royce Cullinan, as well as a Bugatti-inspired four-door coupe. Here in Las Vegas, they brought three vehicles, two of which are under the new Kosmera brand. The press materials suggest the brand will later add SUVs, but the focus for the moment was on performance. They announced plans to build vehicles in Europe, as well as “3-in-1” Kosmera Innovation Showcases in key European cities. The first is planned for Germany and will reportedly include an Innovation R&D Center, an Incubation Hub, and a Premium Transparent Factory, with an initial planned annual capacity of 10,000 units.
The vehicles shown are best described as ‘extreme’. Both are low-slung four-door coupes; the Star Razer resembles the Bugatti-esque model shown last year, while the Star Matrix seems slightly more upright and sedan-like. The figures provided are rather astounding: 2,040 horsepower (from four motors), a 4,400-pound curb weight, an 800V architecture, an aluminum frame with carbon fiber body panels, a 0.20 drag coefficient, and 0-60 mph in 2.4 seconds. The Star Matrix adds an augmented-reality head-up display and virtual track driving coach, while the Star Razer has a trunk-mounted system to deploy and retrieve drones and similar devices. Unfortunately, no pricing information was available and launch timing appears to target 2027 or 2028. A third vehicle, the Nebula Next 01, was displayed on a separate stand in a different hall, claiming even more impressive numbers (0-60 in under 2 seconds, Cd of 0.185). However, it appears this vehicle is conceptual only, so don’t look for it on the road anytime soon. Can we believe these aggressive targets? It’s challenging but remember that electronics giant Xiaomi brought their Tesla-beating EV to market in only three years, so we can’t rule them out completely.
Finally, I spent some time with Ambarella Inc , an edge AI semiconductor company whose products are used in a wide variety of edge AI and human vision applications. The focus of my visit was their technology to support autonomous driving (currently deployed with Kodiak’s heavy-duty trucks). The company has been around for over 20 years, and purchased Oculii (and its adaptive AI software algorithms) four years ago. The most impressive tool was their industry-unique 4D radar, which can detect objects over 300 meters away, far more capable than current lidar (and, like conventional radar, unaffected by darkness or fog). You can see a demo here; I was driven around the city to see a side-by-side comparison of what 4D radar sees—and when—versus lidar, and the comparison was startling. Although the cost of lidar is dropping, 4D radar may be a viable alternative in certain applications (like the industrial locations where Kodiak’s driverless trucks are operating). We learned from McKinsey that investment in autonomous driving outpaced investment in electrification last year, and this is just one of many examples shown at CES.
After four full days, I still feel like I experienced only a fraction of what was on display at CES, but I definitely walked away feeling more informed and more enthusiastic about some of the products and technologies currently under development. Let’s see what happens next year…
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