It says a lot about the current moment when one of the world’s biggest EV vendors announces not a new, more affordable model or a cool futuristic concept car at the world’s biggest electronics show, but a humanoid robot. And one we’ve already seen.
Hyundai’s decision to use its CES keynote to promote Boston Dynamics’ Atlas robot sends a clear message about how the auto industry is absorbing the bad news about EVs in the United States in 2025, and where it thinks things are headed in the new year. EVs are out, and AI and robotaxis are in.
Meanwhile, the AI continues to suck all the air from the room. Car companies think they need to have an AI strategy, or a chatbot, or even a humanoid robot to be taken seriously by Wall Street’s overzealous investors. Now just selling cars is not enough.
Perhaps someday CES will reemerge as a car show. Perhaps when the auto industry is feeling less concerned about global trade and rising manufacturing costs, it will be ready to give us a glimpse of the future again.
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