CES 2025: big names absent as Chinese companies return to Las Vegas amid US tech tension

While Chinese companies comprise over a quarter of registered exhibitors, many tech giants are notably absent

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CES, which takes place annually in Las Vegas, is one of the world’s largest consumer technology trade shows. Photo: AP Photo

Published: 10:00am, 5 Jan 2025Updated: 12:44pm, 5 Jan 2025

CES, the annual consumer electronics trade show in Las Vegas that officially kicks off on Tuesday, is seeing a rebound in Chinese exhibitors despite an escalating tech war between Beijing and Washington.

More than 1,300 Chinese companies – including 1,212 from the mainland and 98 from Hong Kong – are set to showcase their latest offerings in the major expo organised by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), according to a list on the event website. Together, they comprise more than a quarter of the 4,500 registered exhibitors, making China the largest foreign participant this year.

While this represents an increase from the 1,115 Chinese companies registered at CES in 2024 and the 493 listed in 2023 when Covid restrictions hampered international travel, this year’s number still falls short of the record 1,551 Chinese exhibitors in 2018, when they made up over a third of all participants.

Notably absent this year is ByteDance, which registered last year under its US office, although its subsidiary TikTok still has a presence. Also missing are big names that showed up in previous years, including Baidu, US-sanctioned Huawei Technologies, and drone maker DJI, which has been on a Pentagon blacklist since 2021.

Alibaba Group Holding, owner of the South China Morning Post, maintains a presence with its cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) unit Alibaba Cloud.

A TikTok live-streaming booth at CES last year. Photo: Matt Haldane

Chinese participation at CES is overshadowed by growing tensions between the world’s two largest economies. The US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security said on Thursday it was considering proposing a rule to cut China out of the drone supply chain.