• by Dan Hodges , Op-Ed Contributor, November 19, 2018

What does the 50th anniversary of the Apollo moon landing have in common with the technology at CES?

CES first started in 1967, and the products featured at CES that year were driven by technologies invented in the 1950s and 1960s. Two years later, the first men landed on the moon, July 20, 1969.

The Apollo program connected humanity with its dreams and created the core technologies driving the pace of change 50 years later.

Robotics, computer hardware and software, nanotechnology, aeronautics, micro-electromechanical systems, supercomputers and microcomputers, software and microprocessors — all were created using technology developed by NASA.

Intel was a product of the Apollo program. New chips produced by Intel today and others are driving the artificial-intelligence revolution. These chips will power embedded A.I., machine learning, digital assistants and voice technologies.

The new chips will connect AI to household appliances, powering meaningful and coordinated interactions. The chip sets also have the potential to transform marketing and advertising.

The transformative impact of AI and the role out and capabilities for 5G will provide enough bandwidth to increase the quality and volume of video consumption, enable self-driving cars and the car as a media platform. It will make interactions faster and seamless. The rise of smart cities and location-based advertising will also be fueled by AI, as will medical therapeutics and new health applications.

Digital therapeutics that enhance traditional medical practices and encourage behavioral change and standalone direct therapy are some of the services available with the rollout of 5G.

These developments also affect the pace of change in the advertising and marketing marketplace on many levels. CES offers the premiere venue to understand impact.

The technical innovations created by the Apollo moon landing have had vast impact in the last 50 years. Today, technologies and companies created to support the Apollo program, such as chips and software, will drive the pace of change for the next 50 years.

CES 2019 offers the opportunity to see, feel and touch all of these creations in one location.