Though many might not be sure of what happens at the CES, the world's biggest tech show is as magical as it is frustrating.
"It's not about going to Vegas to have a good time for four days," says Yakan, who arrived in Las Vegas wearing the double hat of CEO of Koosmik and head of innovation at Batipart. "There are at least 50 conferences going on at any one time, so you have to accept that you're going to miss things. And don't cancel your plans just to go and see Samsung's curved screen at the last moment: dozens of articles will present it just as well."
His five tips
1. Plan as much as possible. "You're always going to forget something that's going to get you in trouble. So try to book your plane tickets well in advance, arrive a little earlier, even if it means taking a slightly less well placed hotel before the event and a very well placed hotel during the event. Think about Esta and all the administrative formalities, about electrical outlets, about a second battery because you won't have time to recharge, about drinking water because the days are long."
2. Register online and pick up your badge at the airport. "The CES procedure is a bit 'heavy' because they ask for a lot of information, but registering online allows you to pick up your badge at the airport and avoid queues."
3. Target people to meet and events and side-events to attend. "I'm going to Vegas in my dual role as CEO of Koosmik and head of technology at Batipart. On the one hand, I want to make contacts for next year's fintech and on the other, identify technology trends. So I prepare my meetings in a very precise agenda and in my spare time I am ready to have discussions during more informal meetings, such as walking with an executive to an event, going for a coffee with them, etc. MyGlobalVillage has developed well and there are many community events to attend, such as the Luxembourg delegation dinner [on 4 January].”
The Las Vegas Convention Center West Hall. Photo: Shutterstock
4. Do not rent a car. "There is temptation to rent a car to be more independent. But with the crowds, this will turn into a nightmare. The traffic is very heavy and you are more likely to lose time than to gain it! With the CES badge, public transport is free.”
5. Don't necessarily rent a stand. "Apart from the costs, if you take a stand, you are stuck there. Unless you have several people and increase the costs. Whereas being able to go quietly from one point to another allows you to multiply your contacts. Be careful with appointments after CES, many of those who come leave immediately, including the Americans. Even when there are a lot of events on the sidelines of CES."
His five events to follow
Obviously, if you ask a geek to pick five events, he'll give you ten. Or five, before adding this one. And that one. Not to mention this one. Yakan is no exception to the phenomenon!
1. The BMW-Stellantis match. "If you see the number of manufacturers and companies working in the automotive field, you understand that this is a CES2023 topic. But to see executives from major corporations traveling themselves when they're not geeks, that speaks for itself about the importance they place on the event."
2. The leaders in technology dinner with Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman. The first woman to lead a global exchange in 2017 and busy modernising it, including asking the SEC to add diversity elements to the reports that listed companies have to publish.
3. Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian's speech. The topic is key: it is no longer enough to capture a consumer's attention; you have to capture their imagination, which requires creativity, personalisation and humanity. An engaged community can propel any brand, creator or idea to the forefront.
4. AMD CEO Lisa Su's speech: "If she ever came out and said that the world should expect a shortage of chips, a lot of people who have announcements to make at the show would be in a tizzy. It's a key topic because most electronic devices or cars have more and more of them."
5. The Q&A on women in tech. The world needs many more women in leadership and strategic positions. And CES is hosting a special session on their roles in tech, moderated by Stephanie Dismore, general manager of HP North America.
Yakan in vain tried to add more events to his list, like the Web3 part of the "Metaverse" vertical, or the live chat with an astronaut from the International Space Station and the sessions around diversity and inclusion, or the Innovation Awards… Now it’s clear why the CES is as magical as it is frustrating.
The event officially starts on 5 January and ends on 8 January, with a nine-hour time difference (at 11am in Luxembourg, it is 2am in Las Vegas).
Yakan will not be the only Luxembourger on the spot, since the Chamber of Commerce is taking a delegation of about thirty people with it, via its Americas advisor Steven Koener, and the Luxembourg consul in San Francisco, Daniel Cruz. On the MyGlobalVillage website, others have registered for events without being on the Luxembourg list.
This story was first published in French on . It has been translated and edited for Delano.