Countdown to CES 2026: A Preview with CTA President Kinsey Fabrizio

In the 69th episode of the Trade Show Talk podcast, host Danica Tormohlen interviewed Kinsey Fabrizio, president of the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) and producer of the Consumer Electronic Show (CES). They discuss what’s new for CES 2026, which is expected to welcome more than 140,000 attendees from 150+ countries to Las Vegas in January. 

 

The 2026 tech extravaganza will debut the CES Foundry focused on AI and quantum technologies, a show sector that will be held at Fontainebleau Las Vegas. Fabrizio shared insights from her recent trip to the UFI Global Congress in Hong Kong and outlined how CTA is leveraging AI to enhance attendee experiences through the event’s mobile app.  

 

Additionally, there's an advocacy update from Exhibitions & Conferences Alliance EVP Tommy Goodwin on the latest government and tariff developments affecting the trade show industry. 

 

This episode is brought to my Trade Show News Network and is sponsored by Marriott.   

Chapters 

 00:00 Introduction to Trade Show Talk 

01:26 Meet Kinsey Fabrizio: Background and Achievements 

02:47 Insights from the UFI Global Congress 

05:06 Preview of CES 2026 

06:25 Exciting New Features at CES 2026 

08:18 The Role of Robotics and Health Tech at CES 

12:42 Kinsey's Fabrizio's Journey and Leadership at CTA 

22:54 Advocacy and AI in the Tech Industry 

30:14 Personal Interests and Hobbies 

31:10 Favorite Gadgets and Wishlist 

35:27 Travel Tips and Hacks 

39:06 Advocacy Update with Tommy Goodwin 

39:33 Government Reopening and Tariff Discussions 

46:05 Visa Fee and Industry Impact 

50:17 Conclusion and Farewell 

 

Guest bio: Kinsey Fabrizio

Kinsey Fabrizio is president of the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)®, which represents more than 1,200 consumer technology companies and owns and produces CES® - the most influential tech event in the world. In this role, Fabrizio serves on CTA’s Executive board and directs strategy and operations across all business units. 

Since joining CTA in 2008, Fabrizio has driven transformation at both CTA and CES. As senior vice president, she oversaw CES conferences and show operations, led an expansion of CES products, and spearheaded a modernization of CTA’s membership infrastructure and categories. 

Earlier in her career, she drove strategic growth in emerging tech categories. A pioneer in the digital health space, Fabrizio created CTA’s Health Division, launched a healthcare provider program for doctors at CES 2015, and debuted CES’s first Continuing Medical Education (CME)-accredited conference in 2019. She also spearheaded the Video Division Board’s 4K and 8K TV initiatives, founded the Content and Entertainment Council, and launched CTA’s Disruptive Innovation Council in 2016 to engage companies with breakthrough technologies and services. 

Fabrizio’s leadership earned her recognition as one of Washingtonian’s Most Powerful Women in 2025 and a Washingtonian Tech Titan in 2024 and 2025. She also received the 2023 Women in CT Legacy Award for her contributions to the consumer technology industry. 

Fabrizio is a member of the George Mason University Costello College of Business Dean's Advisory Council and the Washington Economic Club. She holds a BA from George Mason University and an MBA from the University of Maryland Global Campus. She lives in Arlington, VA, with her husband and two children. 

Guest bio: Tommy Goodwin

Tommy Goodwin is Executive Vice President for the Exhibitions & Conferences Alliance (ECA), the advocacy association for the business events industry. In this role, he leads ECA’s work on behalf of the interconnected ecosystem of exhibitors, event and meeting organizers, suppliers, venues, and destinations that comprise the global business events landscape.

Prior to joining ECA, Tommy spent more than 20 years working for several globally recognized associations and corporations, including Oracle, AARP, and the Project Management Institute.

Recognized by The Hill in its list of association "Top Lobbyists" every year since 2020, Tommy has also received several industry awards including:

CEO Update/Association Trends: Leading Association Lobbyist (2023)

American Society of Association Executives (ASAE): ASAE Fellow (2022)

DCA Live: Association Innovation Leader (2022)

Trade Show news Network: Industry Support Award (2022)

MeetingsNet: Changemaker (2022)

Host bio: Danica Tormohlen

An award-winning journalist who has covered the trade show industry since 1994, Danica Tormohlen is VP of Group Content, Meetings, Sports, Travel for Informa Connect. In her role, she oversees content for Trade Show News Network, Corporate Event News, BizBash and Connect's portfolio of in-person events. These leading media brands publish websites, newsletters, social media channels, video, podcasts and online and in-person programming for the trade show, corporate event, association meeting, experiential marketing and exhibition industries.

Tormohlen currently serves as president of the Women in Exhibitions Network North America chapter. She has been a speaker and moderator at major industry events, including the TSNN Awards, IMEX, IAEE, SISO, UFI, ESCA, DI and Large Show Roundtable — to name a few.

Keywords: CES, Kinsey Fabrizio, Consumer Technology Association, AI, trade shows, event industry, technology trends, advocacy, digital health, robotics