CES gadget show turnout falls more than 70% thanks to COVID

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Attendance at the CES gadget show in Las Vegas fell more than 70% compared to its previous in-person event two years ago, its organizer said Saturday. The Consumer Technology Association said that more than 45,000 people attended the multi-day event on the Las Vegas Strip that ended Friday. More than 170,000 were there for the 2020 convention. The COVID-19 pandemic led the CTA to take 2021′s conference online, but the trade group decided eight months ago to bring a physical CES 2022 back to Vegas. That proved challenging amid a global spike in infections caused by the fast-moving omicron coronavirus variant that emerged late last year.