CES 2026 brought a week full of exciting showcases, interesting panels, and, of course, cutting-edge tech. Over the years, CES has carved out a special place for automotive tech, where big automakers are given a platform to unveil and release their newest offerings. In 2026, automotive tech at CES was all about concept cars, AI assistants, and in-cabin tech. Here are some of our favourite showcases from this year.
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In This Article
Sony Afeela 1
Made in collaboration with Sony and Honda, the Afeela 1 prototype made its debut at CES 2023. Last year, Sony Honda Mobility (SHM) showcased the pre-production model. This year, SHM displayed a new Afeela Prototype alongside the updated version of the Afeela 1 pre-production model. The Afeela 1 is set to reach customers by the end of the year, fetching $89,900. It will come in 3 colours – Tidal Gray, Calm White, and Core Black. While its sales are currently limited to California, SHM plans to expand to Arizona in 2027. It will also start delivering to Japan in early 2027. The new Afeela Prototype SUV will be ready for launch in 2028.
BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant with Amazon Alexa+
The BMW iX3, which broke cover at the Munich Auto Show last year, showcased its futuristic tech at CES 2026. The highlight of the vehicle was BMW’s new Intelligent Personal Assistant. This AI-powered car assistant made its debut on the iX3, but BMW says it will reach the rest of its lineup by 2027. The personal assistant reaffirms the automaker’s guiding principle of ‘Hands on the Wheel, Eyes on the Road’. It is integrated with Amazon Alexa+, which helps it carry out natural conversations with the driver and passengers. BMW is the first automaker to collaborate with Amazon and bring Alexa+ to its platform.
NVIDIA Alpamayo
NVIDIA is one of the big players tackling the challenges presented by autonomous driving. It unveiled the Alpamayo 1 at CES 2026, the industry’s first chain-of-thought reasoning Vision Action Language (VLA) model. This model has a 10-billion-parameter architecture, which enables it to assess visual input and generate trajectories and reasoning traces. Developers can use this model to create reasoning-based evaluators and auto-labelling systems. The Alpamayo will bring human-like thinking to Autonomous Vehicles (AV), making the decision-making process more accurate and reasonable.
Garmin Unified Cabin/Meta Neural Band
Garmin and Meta came together to show an automotive OEM proof of concept that combines the Neural Band (Meta) with Unified Cabin (Garmin). The result is a product that allows passengers to control the infotainment functions of their car using simple hand gestures made by the thumb, index, and middle fingers. The Neural Band’s EMG technology to detect these gestures while the Unified Cabin uses them for novel in-cabin experiences. Some of Unified Cabin’s features include Digital key, AI Virtual Assistant capable of executing multiple actions from one voice command, Cabin Chat, Cabin Lighting Show, and Personal Audio Sphere
Gentex Full Display Mirror
Gentex is one of the biggest manufacturers of digital rearview mirrors, driving assistance systems, and in-cabin monitoring systems. At CES 2026, it had five different exhibit areas showcasing its products. But what caught our attention was its next-generation Full Display Mirror (FDM). It delivers sharper images and detailed visuals using its 8MP HD camera and upgraded display. The 4K footage captured by the camera allows the display to zoom in without losing much detail. The Dynamic View Adjustment (DVA) feature enables speed-optimised POV, zooming out for a wider visual at slow speeds and zooming in for precision at high speeds. Reversing the vehicle gives you a downward view in the mirror, making it easier to park your car.
Donut Solid State Battery
This year at CES, Donut Labs gave us a taste of the future with the world’s first solid-state battery. This battery will power Verge Motorcycles’ current lineup by the end of the first quarter of 2026. It delivers 400 Wh/kg of energy density and can be fully charged in just 5 minutes without limiting charging to 80%. Donut Labs claims that its solid-state battery is good for up to 100,000 cycles. It retains 90% of its capacity in extreme temperatures of –30°C and 100°C. Donut Labs has paid special attention to the safety of this battery, using no flammable liquid electrolytes, thermal runaway chains, or metallic dendrites.
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Final Thoughts
These were our favourite car and automotive tech products showcased at CES 2026. While you’re here, check out our favourite consumer tech products at CES 2026 as well. If you think we missed out on a piece of tech, give it a shoutout in the comments!
