CES 2026: Smart Legos, laundry-folding robots, singing candy and bionic pandas debut at tech fest

CES, the annual shindig for techies in Las Vegas, has kicked off this week with the latest and greatest in robots, gadgets and toys coming in 2026.

From laundry-folding robot butlers to fancy alarm clocks and lollipops that play music in your head, here’s a rundown of some of the top hits from the first two days of the confab.

A laundry-folding robot

LG unveiled its take on the humanoid butler robot with CLOiD, which it claims will be able to load a washer or dryer, stack and fold clothes, toast a croissant in the oven and fetch milk from the fridge.

CLOiD – which aims to create a “zero labor home” – boasts two five-fingered hands, fully articulated arms that can move and bend and the ability to speak and mimic facial expressions on its black-screen face. 

But when it took the stage in Vegas, CLOiD took its time — an agonizing 30 seconds to take a towel from Brandt Varner, vice president of sales and home appliances, and throw it into the washing machine. It did manage to fold a dish rag — which an LG exec gushed was a “holy grail” in home robotics — but we shudder to think how long we’d wait for a load of laundry to get put away.

CLOiD was similarly deliberate when it came to pulling the milk from the fridge, and frankly, we were a bit concerned he was going to drop it. It’s unclear when or if CLOiD will be available to purchase, though LG signaled a potential to connect the bot to other LG smart home devices.

This bot can lift 110 pounds

Perhaps more impressive than CLOiD was “Atlas,” the humanoid bot unveiled this week by Boston Dynamics, the longtime creator of famously creepy robot dogs. The life-size Atlas rose to its feet after slumping on the stage like — well, a pile of laundry. It then swiftly strutted around the stage with odd-but-graceful movements that included rotating its torso 360 degrees.

The firm claims Atlas can lift up to 110 pounds, but the bot didn’t do any heavy labor during the demonstration. Instead, it waved to the crowd in a strikingly elegant manner that recalled Queen Elizabeth II.

Hyundai plans to deploy Atlas at a manufacturing plant near Savannah, Ga., by 2028. 

Samsung’s foldable phone

Samsung’s foldable handheld was one of the buzzier items to be unveiled at CES. As its name suggests, the Trifold is a cross between a traditional smartphone and a tablet with three foldable panels – allowing users to adjust the size of the screen based on their need and store it easily in their pocket. 

Despite having the “biggest battery Samsung has ever had in a foldable phone,” the Trifold is just 3.9 mm thick at its thinnest point. 

The device doesn’t have a US release date yet, but it is expected to cost at least $2,500 when it officially hits the market.

Your dog needs a phone, too

How young is too young for a cell phone? What if it’s in dog years?

Now you can cough up $90 for a PetPhone that attaches to your dog or cat’s collar to track their location, play calming music and even allow two-way phone calls.

There’s also a small camera device that owners can purchase and attach to the PetPhone so they can see what their pets see as they roam the house, root through the laundry – or nap on the couch.

With a single tap in the GlocalMe app, owners can call their pets and command them to calm down, come home or simply say hello. Jack Russell owners beware – if the pet jumps three times in 60 seconds, it can call its owner.

Singing candy

For a sweet treat and a sweet tune at the same time, try the LolliPop Star – a lollipop that plays music in your head once you bite down on the candy.

It uses vibrations from the lollipop stick that go from your skull’s bones to your inner ear to create sound that only you can hear. 

Lava, the company behind the musical treat, is currently partnering with three pop artists to use their music: offering a peach flavor for Ice Spice, blueberry for Akon and lime for Armani White. It plans to launch the candies soon for $9 a pop.

But there’s no sugarcoating it: social media users were quick to mock the outdated bone conduction technology, which was also used in children’s toothbrushes from Hasbro in the early 2000s to play two-minute tunes while kids brushed their teeth.

Fuzzy bionic pandas

There’s a new cuddly robot companion on the market: AI-powered bionic panda cub An’An from Mind With Heart Robotics. The fuzzy black-and-white bot aims to provide companionship for elderly individuals with cognitive decline or kids struggling with social skills.

More than 10 sensor suites throughout the bot help it respond to human touch, mimicking the behavior of a real panda cub with gentle hugs and nudges. It also learns to respond to individual voice and behavioral patterns.

An’An also comes with a dedicated app to manage tasks and set reminders – though fiddling with a phone app might not be the most user-friendly option for elderly patients with mental decline.

A smarter Lego

Lego is looking to push ahead into the digital age of play with its Smart Brick – essentially an entire computer system squeezed into a 2×4 Lego Brick. It’s an attempt by the toy giant, known for its colorful plastic bricks, to keep up with the times while continuing to offer no-screen play.

The Smart Brick – which is loaded with a custom-made chip measuring smaller than a single Lego stud – will make its debut March 1 as part of a new Star Wars collection.

When paired with Smart Minifigures and Tags, like Minifigs of Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia, the Smart Brick can add context-appropriate interactive sound and lights to the Lego building experience.

Lego said the battery will work even after years of inactivity, but can be juiced up by wireless charging.

Color-changing sunglasses

Here’s a high-tech take on 1970s fader sunglasses: With these, you don’t need the sun to make the lenses go dark.

Instead, eyewear startup Povec unveiled frames that allow users to adjust the level of tint with a touch of the finger. The electrochromic technology is aimed at providing flexibility for outdoor athletes like skiers and cyclists when they’re in the elements.

If that sounds like a cool look, be aware that you could be paying designer prices: Povec told tech outlet Mashable that the glasses, expected to launch in May, will retail for $250 to $300.

An anti-doomscrolling device

Ambient’s Dreamie is a new alarm clock with an LED light that gradually lightens to a bright yellow to simulate a sunrise, making for a more calming wake-up experience – similar to the Hatch clock and other sunrise alarm clocks on the market.

But the Dreamie is much smaller than the competition — it can fit into the palm of your hand. It also doesn’t require an app for use or setup – allowing users to fully unplug before bed.

There is a circular touchscreen on one end of the clock, where you can set alarms and choose from a library of calming music. There’s a built-in speaker, but the clock is also Bluetooth compatible so it can be paired with wireless headphones.

Still, it retails for $249.99, a pricetag that’s richer than rivals by at least $80.