An estimated 175,000 people will gather in Las Vegas from Jan. 6-9 for the annual International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the premier conference of the consumer electronics industry. Some of the world's largest firms use the show to debut and feature new products and to showcase experimental and conceptual projects they are working on. While Stratfor typically doesn't track the latest iPhone model, the most dazzling 4K Ultra HD television or the highest resolution camera, the implications of the products themselves — and the innovative research behind them — can fundamentally change how countries interact with their citizens and with one another. Then and Now Consumer electronics have only existed for about 100 years — since the advent of radio communications receivers — but their impact on geopolitics cannot be overstated. Personal computers, cellphones and countless other products have revolutionized human life.