LAS VEGAS, Nev., Jan 7, 2026, 04:42 PST
Nvidia (NVDA.O) CEO Jensen Huang said at CES 2026 that the company’s next-generation Vera Rubin chips are in “full production,” aiming for a five-fold jump in artificial-intelligence computing for chatbots and other applications. He said a flagship server would pack 72 graphics processing units and 36 central processors, and generate “tokens” — the chunks of text AI models process — about 10 times more efficiently. “Only in that way can you truly trust how the models came to be,” Huang said, describing plans to release training data tied to Nvidia’s Alpamayo self-driving software. Reuters
The claims land as the annual Consumer Electronics Show runs through Friday, with AI being pitched less as a feature and more as the plumbing for everything from humanoids to health gadgets and car software. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said the big themes he is watching at this year’s show are robotics, autonomy and the “monetization” of AI — turning pilots into products that bring in revenue. Reuters+1
The car industry’s pivot is part of the backdrop. Autonomous driving technology is expected to dominate CES this week as investors look for AI to revive a sector facing slow progress, safety incidents and tighter scrutiny, and automakers dial back electric-vehicle plans after policy shifts in Washington hit demand. “This year you will see more and more focus on AI and autonomous,” said C.J. Finn, PwC’s U.S. automotive industry leader, while Boston Consulting Group’s Felix Stellmaszek said “cost and cost competitiveness” will be hard to miss. Reuters
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.O) showed off MI455 data-center processors and an enterprise MI440X version meant to run in companies’ own server rooms, and CEO Lisa Su previewed MI500 chips the company said would ship in 2027 with 1,000 times the performance of an older processor. Italy’s Generative Bionics CEO Daniele Pucci also unveiled a humanoid robot called GENE.01 and said: “Our first commercial humanoid robot will be manufactured in the second half of 2026.” Intel (INTC.O) launched its Panther Lake Core Ultra Series 3 PC chips, built on its 18A manufacturing process, and said performance is up to 60% better than its Lunar Lake Core Ultra Series 2 parts. Reuters+1
Lenovo (0992.HK) said it is pairing its liquid-cooled server gear with Nvidia platforms to help AI cloud providers bring new data centres online in “weeks”. “Lenovo AI Cloud Gigafactory with NVIDIA sets a new benchmark,” CEO Yang Yuanqing said. The company also introduced Qira, a personal AI system it said can work across Lenovo and Motorola devices, and showed concept AI glasses and a “Project Maxwell” wearable assistant. Reuters
Hyundai Motor Group (005380.KS) said it will deploy production versions of Boston Dynamics’ Atlas humanoid robot at its U.S. plant in Georgia from 2028, starting with parts sequencing and expanding into component assembly by 2030. Hyundai said it aims to build a factory capable of manufacturing 30,000 robot units annually by 2028 as it pushes into “physical AI” — software embedded in machines that collect real-world data and make autonomous decisions. The company said Atlas can lift up to 50 kilograms (110 pounds) and operate in temperatures from minus 20 to 40 degrees Celsius. Reuters
Mobileye (MBLY.O) said it would buy humanoid robotics startup Mentee Robotics for about $900 million, betting that the sensing and safety systems built for self-driving cars can translate into two-legged machines. The deal leans on “embodied AI” — AI that senses and acts through a physical body — and pits Mobileye against rivals including Tesla (TSLA.O), Figure AI, Agility Robotics and several Chinese startups. Mentee said proof-of-concept deployments are expected in 2026, with series production and commercialization targeted for 2028. Reuters
On the show floor, the AI story gets smaller and stranger. Tech site The Verge pointed to a surge of “companion” robots and pets pitched less as appliances than as social devices, from LG’s CLOiD home robot to desk-sized bots and AI-powered robot pets designed to recognize voices and adapt to users.
But the near-term bets still hinge on supply, licensing and whether customers keep paying for new hardware. Huang said the signal that China will clear purchases of Nvidia’s older H200 chips will be the arrival of orders — “When those purchase orders come in, I will know,” he said — as the company waits for export approvals from the U.S. and other governments. Many of the robots on display are also early in the pipeline; delays, safety setbacks or a tighter regulatory stance could stretch timelines well past the targets companies are sketching on stage this week. Reuters
