All the way forward for transportation tech that stood out at CES 2024

One other CES has come and gone and transportation was nonetheless one of many central actors on one of many world’s largest tech levels. It wasn’t simply electrical automobiles both that captured our consideration at CES 2024.

Firms and startups targeted on automated driving, EV charging, software program (and extra particularly AI), sensors, aviation, boats, drones, micromobility — you title it — have been there. And fortuitously, so was TechCrunch.

Listed here are among the tech themes that stood out to us at CES 2024.

Every little thing electrical

Picture Credit: Kirsten Korosec

The Large Three U.S. automakers — GM, Ford and Stellantis — could not have had splashy shows and product reveals, however quite a few others have been there serving to cement CES as a serious auto present. Honda, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, Sony, Turkey’s Togg and Vinfast all confirmed off electrical ideas and manufacturing automobiles on the occasion.

It wasn’t simply massive established automakers that had a presence at CES 2024 both. Electrification has seeped into each nook of transportation from bikes and e-bikes to go karts, huge rigs, boats and plane.

As an example, Segway revealed two electrical scooters, the E2 Professional and Superscooter ST1, two e-bikes known as the Segway Xafari and the Segway Xyber in addition to a Segway GoKart Professional 2 that may be linked to a PC and used for enjoying racing video games like Forza.

Startups have been additionally in full drive and may very well be discovered at quite a lot of CES-related occasions akin to Pepcom and Unveiled. Cleveland, Ohio-based startup Land Vitality was again with its sporty e-bike that has a swappable battery, whereas Finland’s Verge Bikes confirmed off its Verge TS Extremely, an electrical bike with a hubless ring design, superior driver help tech and a powertrain that produces an eye-popping 201 horsepower and 885 pound-feet of torque. Over in Eureka Park, the place a whole lot of startups arrange store, electrification was additionally current. One startup that caught my eye was Photo voltaic Buggy, an organization that has developed an electrical city mobility automobile that appears like an enclosed golf cart.

Picture Credit: Kirsten Korosec

And naturally, there have been the electrical plane and drones. On the startup entrance, Pivotal opened up on-line orders for its private electrical plane the Helix whereas autonomous on-demand drone corporations Zipline and Wing landed a big cope with Walmart. Hyundai’s superior air mobility unit Supernal revealed its production-intent electrical vertical takeoff and touchdown plane and Xpeng Aeroht, the subsidiary of Chinese language electrical automobile maker Xpeng Motors, confirmed off a brand new idea and introduced that deliveries for its Land Plane Service would begin in late 2025.

With so many electrical autos, it won’t shock people to study that EV charging corporations have been additionally there en masse. Exterior of the better-known charging infrastructure corporations, we discovered startups targeted on EV charging software program in addition to these exhibiting off novel approaches like WiTricity’s wi-fi charging tech.

Generative AI

Picture Credit: Volkswagen

Earlier than even stepping foot on the present flooring, TechCrunch employees have been forecasting that AI would dominate CES 2024. We weren’t incorrect. AI was in every single place, together with in transportation from automobiles and e-bikes to scooters and electrical aviation.

There have been a great deal of corporations touting AI. Whereas there was actually loads of vaporware, many corporations demonstrated how software program is more and more incorporating AI to supply (hopefully) extra succesful merchandise, together with automobile sensors, voice assistants in automobiles and autonomous driving methods.

There was additionally lot of chatter round generative AI, and extra particularly, ChatGPT, the AI-powered chatbot capabilities through the use of by massive deep studying fashions which were skilled on huge datasets. I checked out two ChatGPT demos: one with BMW and one other from a collaboration with software program firm Cerence and Volkswagen.

Volkswagen introduced plans to add an AI-powered chatbot into all Volkswagen fashions outfitted with its IDA voice assistant.

In the meantime, BMW and associate Amazon confirmed off a improvement venture that makes use of generative AI, powered by the Alexa LLM, to provide the automaker’s voice assistant larger functionality and ship info in a extra human, conversational method.

Hydrogen

Jaehoon Chang, president and CEO of Hyundai Motor Co., heart, and Chang Hwan Kim, senior vice chairman and head of battery improvement and hydrogen and gas cell improvement for Hyundai Motor Co at CES 2024. Picture credit: Getty photographs through Bloomberg

Hydrogen energy isn’t new, nonetheless, it’s taken a little bit of a backseat currently to extra conventional battery electrical autos.  Don’t inform anybody at CES 2024, although, as this yr’s present flooring was affected by autos of all sizes which are hydrogen-powered.

Hyundai, which has a rising portfolio of battery-powered electrical autos, got here to CES to speak about hydrogen gas cells and its imaginative and prescient for the choice gas. Nikola lastly confirmed off one in all its first U.S.-built hydrogen vehicles that it’s beginning to ship to clients and Bosch, which already makes hydrogen gas cells (just like the one Nikola makes use of in its truck), introduced it should make an engine that may combust hydrogen. Truck maker PACCAR additionally confirmed off a hydrogen-powered truck.

We additionally bumped into different hydrogen-focused startups that have been strolling the halls to satisfy with media, potential traders and trade people. Croft Motors was one we got here throughout. The startup is growing “rugged” hydrogen-powered autos, beginning with a three-row, prototype SUV with an “anticipated 1,000 miles of driving vary.

In-cabin {hardware} meets software program

Harman reveals off its ReadyCare product at CES 2024. Picture credit score: Kirsten Korosec

Automakers, automotive suppliers and even some startups, confirmed off their respective imaginative and prescient for the within of the automotive. Sure, there have been loads of touchscreens, together with the favored curved design.

In-car tech stretched properly past that although into areas of security, well being assessments and leisure. Eye-tracking tech was in every single place. As an example, Harman confirmed off its branded Prepared Care system, which may measure a driver’s eye exercise, cognitive load and important indicators to find out the extent of focus and a spotlight on the street forward.

Numerous corporations additionally showcased how {hardware} akin to cameras and different sensors as soon as used for security are actually being leveraged for different extra comfort-focused companies. Bosch confirmed how eye-tracking tech may very well be used throughout your drive to determine what factors of curiosity you’re taking a look at, and the automotive may supply contextual info.

In the meantime, Mercedes offered an entire bundle of options that when mixed creates a full expertise for the driving force and passengers, together with an upgraded voice assistant, in-car gaming, immersive audio and an app developed by will.i.am’s new firm Sound Drive that matches the throttle, brakes and steering to a kind of clever multichannel mixer that influences songs enjoying within the automotive.

My takeaway: corporations perceive that drivers and passengers are a captured viewers, so to talk. They usually’re all engaged on methods to deliver all of the tech we now have on our telephones and houses into the automotive.