Korean Companies Focus on 'Business Meetings' Over Exhibitions for Better Value [CES 2026]

About 500 Fewer Companies Participated in CES Compared to Last Year
Companies Favor In-House Events and Specialized Tech Exhibitions Over CES
Corporate Performance Slump and U.S. Immigration Policy Among Key Factors

"There was a noticeably smaller crowd compared to the last CES."

The atmosphere at CES 2026, the world's largest electronics and IT exhibition held in Las Vegas, USA, is said to be quite different from previous years. An industry insider who attended CES both last year and this year remarked, "The first day was packed with people, but from the second day onward, the crowd was not as large as before. In the past, it was difficult even to walk through the hallways, but this time it was relatively easy."

On the 8th (local time), attendees on the third day of CES 2026, the world's largest consumer electronics and IT exhibition held in Las Vegas, USA, are touring the exhibition hall inside the Venetian Expo. Photo by Park Junyi.

As of December 31, the number of companies registered on the CES 2026 official website was about 4,300 from approximately 160 countries. This is a decrease of about 500 compared to last year's CES, which had around 4,800 companies. The number of Chinese companies attending dropped by 397 from last year's 1,339 to 942 this year. Similarly, the number of Korean companies decreased from 1,031 last year to 853 this year, a reduction of 178 companies.

Why Has the Number of CES Participants Decreased?

In front of the main entrance of the West Hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) in the United States, preparing for the opening of CES 2026 on the 4th (local time). Photo by Park Jun.

Analysts point to a combination of global political and economic changes as the background for the decline in participating companies. First, it has been noted that the stricter anti-immigration stance since the Trump administration has led to more companies and personnel facing difficulties in obtaining visas.

In addition, as the global economy slows down, companies have generally moved to cut costs, resulting in reduced investment in large-scale overseas exhibitions. In particular, startups and small and medium-sized enterprises, which are under greater performance pressure, have increasingly decided to withdraw or scale back their participation, judging that the tangible results from running a booth do not justify the investment. The number of Korean startups participating in this year's CES also dropped by about 28% compared to last year.

There is also a long-term perspective that the status and role of CES are changing. While CES used to serve as the stage for unveiling new technologies in the global electronics and IT industry, recently, it has become more common for companies to hold their own events, release information online, or participate in specialized regional exhibitions in parallel.

SK Group significantly reduced its participation compared to last year. It is believed that the poor performance of several SK Group affiliates influenced the decision to scale down their exhibition. HD Hyundai also did not participate in CES this year, as it did last year.

The Space Left by Korea Becomes a 'Chinese Showcase'

On the 8th (local time), Chinese home appliance companies Hisense and TCL set up booths at the convention hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) during CES 2026, the world's largest consumer electronics and IT exhibition held in Las Vegas, USA. Photo by Park Junyi.

As major Korean companies either skipped this year's CES or reduced their exhibition space, Chinese companies are filling the gap. Chinese electronics company TCL operated the largest exhibition space in the Central Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) this year. There are concerns that if CES continues to become a China-led exhibition, the participation rate of Korean companies may decline even further in the future.