CES 2024: Everything revealed so far, from Nvidia and AI to Samsung's Ballie robot

CES 2024 is here! The TechCrunch team is in Las Vegas this week to see all the action and find out what it means for you. You already know what awaits us. So sit back, relax and stay tuned all week as we bring you the products, announcements and startup news you need to know.

Kicking off the first day are some major announcements from companies including Nvidia, LG and Samsung. Here are all the ways you can watch live.

Here's how you can follow our team's reporting.

Kodiak Robotics' approach to autonomous trucking

Photo credit: Kodiak

Autonomous truck startup Kodiak Robotics unveiled a semi-truck that Kirsten founder Don Burnette said is “the linchpin of its plans to launch commercial driverless operations this year.” The company has specifically set out to build redundancy in to incorporate its safety features in order to have a reserve in the event of a breakdown on the highway with a driver behind the wheel. Get a breakdown of mechanical components and safety systems.

Fox and Polygon Labs are working together to combat deepfakes

Fox has partnered with Polygon Labs, a developer of Ethereum scaling networks, to release an open-source protocol for media companies their articles, photos and more. Called “Verify,” Fox and Polygon pitch the protocol as a way for outlets to protect their intellectual property while giving consumers the ability to verify the authenticity of content. Learn more about the protocol.

Ultrahuman introduces the “Home Health” tracker

Photo credit: Ultrahuman

Indian wearable startup Ultrahuman is getting into the smart home game with the upcoming launch of connected hardware designed to monitor the “health” of your home, as its marketing puts it. The device, called the Ultrahuman Home, is priced at $349 and is scheduled to ship in July. Check out the specifications.

JAN. 8th

Pivotal begins selling private aircraft

From storage to flight in 30 minutes. A 16-foot road trailer accommodates everything you need to take the Helix into uncrowded Class G airspace areas.

Pivotal, which is backed by Larry Page, has started selling its light electric Helix aircraft in the US, which notably does not require a pilot's license to fly. That doesn't mean those paying at least the base price of $190,000 have to forego mandatory training. A number of rules and regulations still apply. The full breakdown of launch pricing and specs can be found here.

Will.i.am's new startup mixes music while driving

Mercedes-AMG and will.i.am introduce the immersive MBUX SOUND DRIVE experience at CES 2024

If you thought that sounded a little ridiculous, contributor Tim Stevens agreed – at least until he attended startup Sound Drive's demo at CES, which left him surprisingly impressed with the underlying technology. Read his detailed impressions of what it's like to experience music “on the go” here.

Sony highlights mobility partnerships, developers and content authenticity

Sony took its last major press conference on Monday, with an expected focus on developers, the success of its intellectual property across its gaming, film and streaming studios, and a focus on its partnership with Honda to embrace the mobility space as a “creativity space.” to imagine. The latter was demonstrated in part by Fortnite teasing in its Afeela car and driving it onto the stage using a PlayStation 5 controller. His “digital birth certificate” also reminded us of the brighter side of NFTs, which Haje Jan Kamps explains in detail here.

Kia's new modular EV van range

Kia PBV concept range

Kia's new electric vans have a modular design. In addition to using a modular powertrain, the vehicles will also feature modular tops, allowing for many different cabin options. However, they remained vague about pricing, specs and expected launch dates for this new fleet of commercial electric vehicles. Read more.

Samsung brings back Ballie; renews green initiative

Photo credit: Samsung

Meet the new and improved Ballie, Samsung Electronic's home robot that the company previewed today. It's about the size of a bowling ball and the battery lasts two to three hours. Ballie features a spatial lidar sensor to help it navigate rooms and obstacles, as well as a dual-lens 1080p projector that allows the robot to project movies, video calls and even act as a second PC monitor. Learn more.

Samsung went beyond cute, rolling robots and showcased its broader connected home initiatives. Aside from expected UI and feature updates to its existing SmartThings home automation platform, Samsung unveiled a “Map View” for users that creates an interactive home map that even includes animated avatars of residents and pets. Learn more.

Additionally, Samsung dedicated part of its keynote speech to its commitment to sustainability. “We are starting to incorporate recycled materials into some of our most popular products, such as recycled fishing nets in our Galaxy,” said Inhee Chung, vice president of corporate sustainability at Samsung. “Smartphones, recycled plastic in our TVs and recycled aluminum in our custom fridges. Recycled plastic accounted for 14% of all plastic used in our products in 2022. And we are working to increase this share.” Read more.

X1 Interpreter Hub: A new real-time translator

Photo credit: Time cauldron

Timekettle announced the X1 Interpreter Hub, a more robust solution designed for meetings. Timekettle calls it “the world’s first multilingual simultaneous interpretation system.” The system works out of the box without the need to download a separate app. In face-to-face meetings, two devices are touched to initiate conversation translation. The handsets feature earbuds, similar to previous Timekettle products. In total, the X1 is capable of supporting up to 20 people simultaneously in five different languages. Read more.

The transparent TV from LG

LG Signature OLED T Photo credit: LG

TVs aren't inherently beautiful or designed for design purposes, but LG Electronics wants to change that perception. Today, the consumer technology giant unveiled what it touts as the “world's first” wireless transparent OLED TV. The LG Signature OLED T combines a transparent 4K OLED screen with LG's wireless video and audio transmission technology.

Breathe a sigh of relief with biotechnologically produced houseplants

Neoplants at CES 2024. Photo credit: Haje Kamps / TechCrunch

French startup Neoplants demonstrates its progress with its houseplants that serve as air purifiers for the home. According to the company, the bioengineered plants can replace 20 “normal” houseplants, based on how many pollutants the plants can remove from the air.

More from Samsung: larger, foldable, rollable displays

Photo credit: Samsung

Ahead of Samsung Electronics' press conference today, we take a look at some of its product plans, which include a “new generation of products that can fold in and out” as well as “monitor-sized” foldable and sliding OLEDs. Samsung has also introduced a “Transparent MICRO LED” display for the first time.

Nvidia is getting started

GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER. Photo credit: Nvidia

Today, Nvidia is moving heavily into artificial intelligence with the unveiling of its GeForce RTX, including the GeForce RTX 40 Super series desktop graphics cards. Many of these are intended for gaming, and Nvidia said 14 titles will get the RTX upgrade treatment, including Horizon Forbidden West, Pax Dei and Diablo IV. The RTX 4080 Super starts at $999.

More chip updates from AMD

Speaking of chips, AMD introduced its new Ryzen 8000G processors for the desktop, with a focus on their AI capabilities.

Eye tracking in cars from Bosch

Photo credit: Bosch

This week, Bosch is introducing two technologies for eye tracking while driving: It detects that your eyes are tired and asks when you get home whether you need an espresso. If so, the connection technology is telling your fancy machine to be ready. The other is a little more complicated, as it's designed to track what you see while driving.

Smart cooking

Photo credit: Haje Kamps (opens a new window) / TechCrunch (opens a new window)

We have a collection of small kitchen appliances, from grills to smart microwaves and everything in between, that are sure to get you cooking this year if you haven't already.

ChatGPT in Volkswagen

Photo credit: Volkswagen

The German automaker plans to build an AI-powered chatbot into all Volkswagen models equipped with its IDA voice assistant. It is currently not available in the US

Apple Vision Pro goes on sale on February 2nd

Photo credit: Apple

And Apple made a splash with a surprise announcement ahead of CES, announcing that the Vision Pro would be available in the US. The consumer electronics giant confirmed that the Vision Pro will be available in the US starting February 2nd. Pre-orders for the $3,500 spatial computing device open on Friday, January 19th.

Some companies made announcements in advance of the major event. Check out what's already made headlines:

Withings' new Multiscope device checks vital signs during telemedicine visits

Invoxia has a new smart collar that is suitable for both cats and dogs

This app allows restaurants and cafes to charge a fee for using the restroom

Aurora and Continental overcome the first major hurdle in the commercial self-driving truck deal

This startup is bringing a “voice frequency absorber” to CES 2024

For just $139, this startup will turn your iPhone into a relic from the BlackBerry era

Qualcomm's next-generation XR chip promises up to 4.3K resolution per eye

Urbanista integrates Powerfoyle technology with solar-powered headphones

Moonwalker robot shoes are becoming lighter and smarter