Despite the increasing numbers related to the new Omicron strain of COVID-19, Las Vegas has been pressing on to get ready for one of the largest conventions in the country. CES 2022 (Consumer Electronics Show) will be landing next month with some of the biggest names in electronics and technology showing off the latest innovations to the world. Except for a few companies, at least, who say they “aren’t” CES ready.
Not everyone is remaining confident that such a show can go down without risk, thus companies have been slowly pulling away from attendance. Lenovo, being one of the latest to back out, adding to quite the list. This list contains some pretty big names, including Amazon and Meta (Facebook), T-Mobile, Twitter, iHeartRadio, AT&T, and more.
CES UPDATE: After closely monitoring the current trends surrounding COVID, it is in the best interest of the health and safety of our employees, customers, partners, and our communities to suspend all on-site activity in Las Vegas.
— Lenovo Stories & News (@LenovoNews) December 23, 2021
Some companies are considering remaining for the virtual side of the convention, while others won’t even have anything to share online.
Sadly, these won’t be the only companies to likely back out as we inch closer to the event. As long as numbers continue to rise, this will cause heightened concern when it comes to travel, let alone packing hundreds of thousands of people into various convention spaces across the city.
Meanwhile, many big names you commonly see at the show have stated that they still plan to be there and have no intention on leaving unless the show itself closes its doors. Which is less likely to happen, as of right now, the CTA (Consumer Technology Association) currently does not have any intention to do so and says the show will go on with many safeguards in place to help keep everyone safe.
Regardless of what happens, we hope the event goes down without any negative consequences. This would be a major win for the tech industry for 2022 if everything goes smoothly. Meanwhile, the show also takes to the internet with a virtual side that companies and attendees are able to take part in if they are too concerned about the in-person activities.
Update 12/23: Microsoft has also added its name to the list.
Update 12/28: AMD, Harmon, and OnePlus have also backed out.
Update 12/31: CES has dropped the last day (Saturday) from its schedule, shortening the show to three days.
