From clever farming to solar-powered taps, there’s a host of futuristic ideas highlighted at this year’s global tech show in Las Vegas
By Sarah Shearman
LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Often cited as a window into the future, the annual Consumer Electronics Show parades countless cutting-edge innovations and crazy gadgets on the larger-than-life strip that is Las Vegas.
Among the giant TVs and cute robots that draw huge crowds to the mega-conference – now in its 10th year – technology that aims to solve social or environmental problems is also on show.
From clever farming to fake meat, here are some of the best inventions for good at this week’s 2020 consumer show, running this week in the U.S. desert city.
AcquaTap, Exaeris Water Innovations
Tulsa-based Exaeris showcased its solar-powered AcquaTap device that extracts up to five gallons of clean, drinkable water a day from the atmosphere, allowing it to generate water anywhere, even in drought and disaster.
Thank My Farmer, Farmer Connect and IBM
Swiss group Farmer Connect and software giant IBM launched a mobile app using blockchain technology so coffee drinkers can trace their beans and support the smallholders who grew them.
Impossible Sausage and Pork, Impossible Foods.
U.S-fake meat startup Impossible Foods unveiled soy sausages and other substitute pork products, aiming to curb environmental and animal welfare concerns engulfing the global meat industry.
AgriTalk Tech
Aiming to make farming more sustainable, Taiwan’s AgriTalk Tech’s AI sensor and monitoring devices collect real-time data – from soil temperature to atmospheric pressure – to help farmers.
Atmos Faceware, Ao Air
With air pollution on the rise, Brooklyn-based startup Ao Air has devised a transparent face mask whose battery-powered fans bring in clean air to the wearer, free from pollutants.
Fisker Ocean, Fisker
With sales of sports utility vehicles rising, L.A.-based electric car company Fisker showcased the Ocean, an electric version with a solar panel on the roof and vegan interiors.
Photo protection, D-ID
Amid privacy and security concerns over facial recognition technology, Israeli tech company D-ID demonstrated a tool that tweaks photos, preventing recognition by computer algorithms.
(Reporting by Sarah Shearman @Shearmans. Editing by Lyndsay Griffiths. Credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation)
