In opposition to a backdrop of tightening budgets and Silicon Valley in monetary flux, entrepreneurs sought out know-how that may assist develop backside traces within the close to time period on the tech business’s annual premiere occasion.

The Shopper Electronics Present, or CES, drew about 115,000 business attendees to Las Vegas final week within the convention’s first full-scale return since 2020, together with massive delegations from manufacturers, companies and media platforms with any type of tech bent.

Retail media networks appeared to dominate the promoting portion of the present, whereas gadgets and software program enabling augmented actuality (AR) proved a tangible various to the ebbing metaverse hype. And up to date advances in synthetic intelligence and rising traits like social commerce had been by no means removed from anyone’s thoughts within the model world.

“It’s really an thrilling present as a result of there was motion in know-how—it’s been three years since most of us have been right here,” stated Dana Bhargava, head of expertise planning and media at Sanofi Shopper Well being.

Retail media networks

With massive activations from Amazon Advertisements and Walmart Join, retail media was inescapable within the C-Area—the promoting and media ground of CES. The pattern has gained momentum within the final yr as extra retailers joined the fray with no indicators of slowing down in 2023.

One query on the minds of many entrepreneurs on the present was how business commerce teams will standardize metrics throughout this burgeoning new medium, which the Interactive Promoting Bureau (IAB) is within the means of figuring out.

“With out fail, with out query, retail media has been the IAB’s quickest rising space in 2022,” stated IAB CEO Dave Cohen on the occasion. “Proper now there isn’t any customary basis, however that’s kicking off in earnest this yr.”

One factor that’s rising is the subsequent evolution of social.

Emily Ketchen, Lenovo

Augmented actuality

As hype across the metaverse cools, entrepreneurs are turning their consideration to a different sort of digital actuality that has extra sensible and tangible makes use of within the close to time period: AR.

With massive tech corporations like Apple and Meta readying and releasing new combined actuality headsets, and software program developer kits and social platforms making this know-how extra accessible than ever, manufacturers are persevering with to search for new methods to faucet AR and enhance shopper engagement. Present makes use of vary from digital try-on tech—particularly in cosmetics and equipment—to video games that may add buzz to an leisure franchise to in-person spectacles that improve bodily activations.

“Augmented actuality is one thing which goes to be massively enabling entrepreneurs to have the ability to talk and interact with their shoppers and prospects in extraordinarily totally different and distinctive methods,” Mastercard chief advertising and marketing and communications officer Raja Rajamannar advised Adweek on the present.

Synthetic intelligence

It was arduous to have a dialog with anyone at CES with out the topic finally wandering to hypothesis about analysis group OpenAI’s textual content generator ChatGPT and its influence. Whereas too just lately launched to have spawned merchandise or startups on the present ground, loads of dialog grappled with the potential results that generative AI—like ChatGPT and fast-advancing picture and video know-how—may have on the promoting and media industries.

In the meantime, extra typical makes use of of AI for predictive analytics and anonymized personalization additionally commanded entrepreneurs’ consideration, particularly with shopper privateness and the top of cookies serving as an ever-present backdrop.

“The power to mine knowledge from AI goes to only help you perceive way more about what persons are pondering,” stated Bhargava. “Yeah, you may see individuals’s conduct, however you don’t know what persons are pondering, and that’s going to vary with AI.”

Social commerce

Like many ecommerce traits which can be solely simply rising in the US, social purchasing has turn out to be commonplace in Asian markets however has but to have a lot massive influence on stateside shopping for habits.

Emily Ketchen, CMO of the Clever Units Group at Lenovo, whose twin headquarters are positioned in North Carolina and Hong Kong, thinks that 2023 may very well be the yr this pattern lastly reaches U.S. shores as advertising and marketing on social platforms strikes into a brand new period with the rising creator financial system.

“One factor that’s rising is the subsequent evolution of social,” Ketchen advised Adweek at CES. “CMOs should be serious about how are you promoting on social, not simply collaborating.”