By Karen Gerwitz, President & CEO, World Trade Center Denver
The World Trade Center Denver was proud to partner with the Colorado Technology Association to lead a delegation of 15 participants, including Mayor Hancock, to see 25 other Colorado companies exhibiting at one of Las Vegas’ largest trade shows, the Consumer Electronics Show. With 175,000 participants in attendance, spread over 5 venues, I can attest to the overwhelming size of this show. I logged 25,000 steps per day and still didn’t see everything after 5 days!
If Colorado manufacturers have not taken the opportunity to see CES, I think you will be inspired by the innovations you will experience. Flying Ubers are only 10 years out, according to Hyundai. Google Translate was blown out of the water by a Chinese company, where I witnessed flawless and instantaneous interpretation between Mandarin and Hungarian, using only a Bluetooth earbud device. Visiting John Deere’s booth with the biggest tractor I’ve ever seen, I was most pleasantly surprised by their transparency of data that help our farmers make better decisions on their crops.
The Colorado companies exhibiting this year included: Altia, CableLabs, Calyton InterGalactic, Dish Network, Eksa, EM Microelectronic – US, Epilog Laser, Furniture for Life, Glow Labs, HeartHero, Innovators Network, LiDAR, LEOMO, Misty Robotics, Occipital, Peak Audio, PopSockets, Public Safety Communications Research, Serenity App, Sphero, Sphix, SpotX, Televes USA, The Last Gameboard, and Trova.
The World Trade Center Denver was one of 20 World Trade Centers from around the world that led business delegations to the show. The CES and the organizer, Consumer Technology Association, are the World Trade Center license holder in Las Vegas, so the Las Vegas Convention Center is the World Trade Center in that city. We are grateful to the WTC Las Vegas for lining up a terrific VIP benefits package for our delegation, including an intimate breakfast with Gary Shapiro, president of the Consumer Technology Association, as well as an International Business Matchmaking Reception.
If you took a pass this year on this incredible event and you are kicking yourself, you are still in luck! Gary Shapiro, of CTA, not Denver’s 9News, will be headlining World Trade Day this year in Denver on March 1st. He gives an excellent keynote on the impact of trade on the electronics industry, which impacts all of us in manufacturing. We will certainly lead another delegation next year to the show, so be sure to reach out to us if you’d like to join us next year!
Karen Gerwitz is the president and CEO of the World Trade Center Denver, a trade association with the mission to support companies in the Rocky Mountain Region to thrive on the global stage. The World Trade Center Denver’s members enjoy trade education, events, and consulting services. For more information, please visit www.wtcdenver.org.
