Attendees mill about as they await the start of the AMD Keynote address during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) on Jan 4, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. — AFP
LAS VEGAS: CES is not allowing Russian companies to display their products at the annual tech show because of the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
A spokesperson for the Consumer Technology Association, the trade group putting together the event in Las Vegas, said the move has only impacted one potential exhibitor.
No Russian exhibitors were present at last year’s show, but four attended virtually in 2021, the spokesperson said. The US is among about 30 countries that have sanctioned Russia over the invasion.
CTA president and CEO Gary Shapiro, who previously called the Russian invasion a “tragic and illegal assault on the people and independent nation of Ukraine”, said some Ukrainian tech companies and startups will display their gadgets at the Las Vegas show.
“A lot of people from around the world want to support Ukraine,” Shapiro said in an interview, while wearing a Ukrainian flag pin on his jacket lapel. “I know my wife actively seeks out products from Ukraine that she can order. And we have bought stuff from Ukraine directly.”
The tech show is expected to draw up to 100,000 attendees by the time it concludes Sunday. The event kicked off Tuesday evening with media previews from just some of the 3,000 companies signed up to attend.
CES officially opens Thursday and is open to the media and others in the tech industry, but not the general public. – AP
