• “Product” is defined as hardware or software intended for consumer use or for use in consumer-oriented technologies (i.e., computer components). Product may also include enterprise or business to business products. A Product is not a process, food (except for novel substitutes for meat products generated through scientific methods), biologics, drugs, or materials science. 

• “Applicant” is defined as the company, person and/or representative submitting the online applications.  

•  “Application” is defined as information submitted through the application process for one (1) product submission, including but not limited to company name, detailed description of company/product, product name, website and/or images of product. 

• Fees are Non-Refundable and Non-Transferable. 

• Application fees must be paid in full using a credit card at the time of submission . Check and invoice payments are not accepted  

• Applicant must submit one (1) application per Product. Exceptions apply when submitting a product set that works together as a system, such as surround sound speakers sold together, which requires only one (1) collective application. Applications must be submitted via the form on the Program website; forms submitted by email or hard copy will not be accepted. 

• Applicant is subject to disqualification if an unpaid balance remains as of August 22, 2025. Applicant remains subject to the full amount due and is required to pay the full application fee regardless of whether Product is awarded as an Honoree or Best of Innovation. 

• All application fees associated with the CES Innovation Awards Program are non-refundable and non-transferable, regardless of award status, withdrawal/cancellation of Application, determination of ineligibility, disqualification or any other reasons.  

• CTA reserves the right to request additional information from the Applicant to fully evaluate an Application. If the information provided is found false during or after the program has concluded, or if Applicant fails to provide the requested information, CTA can disqualify the Product and application fees will not be refunded. 

• CTA reserves the right to revoke the awarded Honoree or Best of Innovation designation, and application fees will not be refunded. 

Fee Schedule

• Applicants that qualify as both an official CES 2026 exhibitor and active CTA Member at the time of submission qualify for the ‘CES 2026 Exhibiting Member Rate’ and will be charged the applicable discounted rate. 

• If Applicant obtains valid exhibitor and/or member status after submitting their application, they may submit a discount request form with proof of both active CTA membership and CES 2026 exhibitor status. CTA will refund the difference in price for valid discount requests received through December 5, 2025. 

• Failure to pay outstanding application fees will result in the Application being disqualified for current and/or future CES awards programs.  

• Engineering. Applicant will describe the engineering and functionality of the Product and how they relate to the Product’s intended use. This may include materials, components, distinctive features, details about user value, processes used to fabricate the product, or proprietary algorithms. 

• Design. Applicant will describe the Product's aesthetic and design qualities. This may include product functionality and how they relate to user benefit, materials, components, ecological impact, platform(s) on which you intend to run, and/or channel(s) through which it is distributed. 

• Innovation. Applicant will provide at least three (3) key points about the Product and what makes it unique. This should include innovative features, life-changing technology, patents or licensing of the technology or other reasons why it deserves an award. 

• Honoree. The class of Products that score above the scoring threshold in each category. 

• Best of Innovation. The highest-scoring Honoree(s) in each category. CTA reserves the right to not award a Best of Innovation winner or award multiple winners based on judge scoring. 

• All Honorees are published on CES.tech/innovations. 

• In addition, Best of Innovation recipients are announced via press release and CTA/CES social media channels.  

• Honorees may begin their own promotions of their award after CTA’s announcement, either on November 5, 2025 or January 4, 2026 for embargoed products.

• Applicants will have the opportunity to embargo their Product at the time of submission or after receiving the final decision status.  

• Those who chose to embargo will be published on CES.tech/innovations at 5 PM Pacific Standard Time, January 4, 2026 with the full list of Honoree and Best of Innovation recipients.  

• Embargoed recipients may begin their promotions after CTA lifts the embargo. 

• CTA cannot accommodate custom announcement dates.  

1. Employees of CTA, its subsidiaries, sales representatives, advertising, promotion and all other service agencies involved with design, execution or fulfillment of Program, and members of the immediate families (defined for these purposes as parents, children, siblings, spouse and domestic partners) or households (whether related or not) of any of the above are not eligible to participate. 

2. CTA and its clients, officers, directors, agents and employees are not responsible or liable for: (1) garbled, illegible, incomplete, damaged, misdirected, late, lost or failed entries; (2) telephone, electronic, hardware, software, network, Internet or computer malfunctions, failures or difficulties; (3) errors or delays in transmission; (4) any condition caused by events beyond the control of CTA which may cause Program to be disrupted or corrupted; (5) any losses or damages caused by participation in Program or acceptance or use of the prize; or (6) any printing or typographical errors in any materials associated with Program. 

3. By applying to Program, Applicant represents and warrants that (a) they own all rights in Product or has the necessary licenses to intellectual property used in Product; (b) Product does not infringe the intellectual property, privacy or publicity rights or any other legal or moral rights of any third party; and (c) Product does not contain any defamatory, libelous, illegal, dangerous or sexually explicit material. It is Applicant’s responsibility to properly attribute any and all trademarked or copyrighted terms used in their application. 

4. CTA reserves the right to limit, restrict, or disqualify participation in the Program at any time for any reason. Specifically, CTA may prohibit Applicant from participating in Program, in its sole discretion, if Applicant fails to follow the Official Rules or act: (a) in a manner it determines to be not fair or equitable; (b) with an intent to annoy, threaten or harass any other entrant or CTA; in a manner that endangers the safety or well-being of any person; or (c) in any other disruptive manner. CTA decisions are final and binding. 

5. CTA reserves the right to rescind any awards granted to Applicant who has misrepresented their application or Product. 

6. CTA reserves the right in its sole discretion to cancel, terminate or suspend Program should electronic viruses, malicious software attacks, unauthorized human intervention, systems malfunctions, failures, difficulties or other causes beyond the control of the CTA and its agencies corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness or proper play or conduct of Program. 

7. By applying to the Program, the Applicant agrees not to state or imply that CTA has endorsed the Product, that the Product has been tested by CTA, or that its scientific principles have been validated by CTA as part of the Program. Furthermore, Applicant may not state or imply that the CES Innovation Award logo or designation serves as certification of the Product’s safety and efficacy, or establishes any claims made concerning the product. Applicant warrants that it will not make any claims regarding Product government approval or certification without proof of such certification. The Applicant also agrees not to suggest that any other product, family or series, or any related item - other than the specific product recognized - is a recipient of the award.