Industry
Anker's CES smart home lineup includes a 1,600 Eufy robovac
It seems like only a few years ago that Anker made nothing more than batteries and chargers . But 15 years into its history, the company's CES portfolio continues to illustrate how much it's expanded. Among other announcements, the company has a new robot vacuum, video doorbell, outdoor light and smart lock. The company hopes its Eufy Clean Robot Vacuum Omni S2 will be your next robovac. Anker claims the vac works on shag carpets up to about 2 inches (5 cm) in pile height.
The overlooked driver of digital transformation
Clear, reliable audio is no longer optional, say Genevieve Juillard, CEO of IDC, and Chris Schyvinck, president and CEO at Shure. When business leaders talk about digital transformation, their focus often jumps straight to cloud platforms, AI tools, or collaboration software. Yet, one of the most fundamental enablers of how organizations now work, and how employees experience that work, is often overlooked: audio. As Genevieve Juillard, CEO of IDC, notes, the shift to hybrid collaboration made every space, from corporate boardrooms to kitchen tables, meeting-ready almost overnight. In the scramble, audio quality often lagged, creating what research now shows is more than a nuisance. Poor sound can alter how speakers are perceived, making them seem less credible or even less trustworthy. Audio is the gatekeeper of meaning," stresses Julliard. "If people can't hear clearly, they can't understand you. And if they can't understand you, they can't trust you, and they can't act on what you said. And no amount of sharp video can fix that. For Shure, which has spent a century advancing sound technology, the implications extend far beyond convenience.
How to watch today's Bosch CES 2026 press conference live
How to watch today's Bosch CES 2026 press conference live The German engineering and tech giant will share new car cabin tech and AI enhancements. How to watch today's Bosch CES 2026 press conference live You might think of Bosch as the modern European equivalent to what the GE brand once was in America. It's a home appliance name (thanks to its partnership with Siemens), but the German multinational brand's core business is really about providing the underlying technology and engineering that powers cars, homes and factories around the world. That focus is reflected at CES 2026, where much of what Bosch is unveiling is intended to be licensed to other companies rather than sold as Bosch-branded products on store shelves. Case in point is Bosch's automotive plans at CES.
Samsung unveiled AI-powered products at CES 2026: Everything announced from the year's first press conference
Samsung unveiled AI-powered products at CES 2026: Everything announced from the year's first press conference CES 2026 kicked off with a big press conference from one of the biggest companies at the show: Samsung. The tech giant held its first look presentation to show off new home products and make a plethora of AI-infused announcements. New TVs, speakers, projectors and more were among the headliners, along with updated gaming monitors and soundbars. Many of the products announced on stage were not actually new, but instead had been dripped out by Samsung recently. We did get a closer look a previously undisclosed set, a flagship 130-inch Micro RGB TV framed by a giant metal easel with embedded speakers.
Everything announced at CES 2026
Samsung and LG showed off TVs and other home products, including a home helper robot. It's the first week of a new year and there's no time for the tech world to slowly ease back into things following the holidays. That's because CES 2026 is in full swing, with all manner of companies descending on Las Vegas to reveal their latest innovations and what they're planning to bring your way in the near future. Many of the Engadget crew are on the ground to check out as much of the new tech as possible. Samsung has already held its First Look presentation, which focuses on home products, while LG has shown off a wide array of TVs. Presentations from NVIDIA, Sony, Lego, Hyundai and others are yet to come.
Amazon is rolling out Alexa for the web so you can use its assistant without a dedicated device
Amazon announced at CES 2026 that Alexa+ for web will come to Early Access customers first. You no longer need an Amazon device to summon Alexa since the AI assistant will be available on the Alexa.com Amazon will roll out the web client to its Alexa+ Early Access customers first, still featuring the company's new and improved AI assistant that was announced in February. The web model won't be much different from the existing Alexa+ that's already available on Echo devices, Fire TV and Fire tablets. However, instead of buying into the Amazon ecosystem, Early Access customers can use any web browser to get Alexa+'s help with everything from basic questions to complex tasks, like controlling your smart home devices, customizing a recipe to account for dietary restrictions or making restaurant reservations if you don't feel like cooking. The Alexa+ web version will also feature a navigation sidebar that will be home to your most-used Alexa features.
The best new popular science books of January 2026
Megan Eaves-Egenes's Nightfaring explores our connection with the night sky Here in the northern hemisphere, January always feels like the longest, drabbest month of the year, so how lucky we are to have a host of new science books to enliven our days. This month, we can explore everything from what the arts bring to our lives to the unsung hero that is friction. Or what we lose when we light up our skies? Daisy Fancourt's Art Cure investigates the impact of the arts, including dancing, on our minds and bodies What if playing the piano, dancing, visiting art galleries or even lying in the mud listening to Wolf Alice at Glastonbury was good for the body, mind and longevity? Or what if it could help us develop brain resilience against dementia? In theory, she's well-placed to make the case as a professor of psychobiology and epidemiology at University College London and director of the WHO's arts and health initiative.
CES 2026 opening night recap: All the early news you missed from Samsung and LG
The first CES announcements are already landing before the show floor opens. CES 2026 is still a day away from officially opening, but Sunday, January 4, delivered the first real wave of news. As has become tradition, the pre-show slate set the tone for the week ahead, anchored by Samsung's annual First Look press conference and CES Unveiled, the latter of which where hundreds of companies previewed products before the show floor opens on January 6. Samsung once again dominated the early conversation with its First Look event, using the stage to outline how it sees AI shaping everything from TVs to home appliances in the year ahead. Rather than focusing on individual specs, Samsung framed its 2026 lineup around adaptive experiences, with screens and devices designed to respond more intelligently to their environment and the people using them.
Can animals read? Not in the human way.
A 2024 study found that cats learn to associate images with words faster than human babies. Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. "My cat always watches my phone as I text or read a book," someone wrote on Reddit . "Even right now she is on my shoulder, intently watching what I am typing on this post. Can she read or is she just interested in what I am doing?"
Generation AI: fears of 'social divide' unless all children learn computing skills
Children take part in an extracurricular club about coding and AI in Cambridge. Children take part in an extracurricular club about coding and AI in Cambridge. Generation AI: fears of'social divide' unless all children learn computing skills In a Cambridge classroom, Joseph, 10, trained his AI model to discern between drawings of apples and drawings of smiles. "AI gets lots of things wrong," he said, as it mistakenly identified a fruit as a face. He set about retraining it and, in a flash, he had it back on track - instinctively understanding the inner nature of artificial intelligence and machine learning in a way few adults do.