CES is always loud, bright and crowded. And this year, so was Sonatus.
We had a bigger booth, bolder demos, and a constant flow of OEMs, partners, and media, making this our most visible CES yet. The industry’s appetite for intelligence-driven, software-defined vehicle (SDV) technology is accelerating, and this year, the momentum around Sonatus was palpable.
Watch Sonatus execs recap the experience of CES 2026
Similar to previous years, Sonatus showcased how our AI-enabled SDV technologies are rapidly scaling across the automotive industry. With our solutions now integrated into more than 6 million production vehicles, CES 2026 made one thing unmistakably clear: AI in vehicles is no longer experimental — it’s operational, impactful, and gaining traction.
That reality was on full display through collaborations with Nissan Technical Centre Europe (NTCE), Michelin, Bosch Engineering Group, Renesas, Hagiwara, AWS, NXP, and a growing ecosystem of AI model partners. Across passenger cars, commercial fleets, and next‑generation E/E architectures, these demos showed how intelligence is already reshaping diagnostics, development, personalization, and in‑vehicle decision making.
And yes — the 1970 Ford Bronco EV returned to center stage, joined this year by a 2026 Nissan LEAF, a Class 8 Kenworth T880 truck, and a 1969 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu, which drew the attention of passers-by.
This year’s demonstrations built on the Sonatus Vehicle Platform and introduced new capabilities across diagnostics, in‑vehicle intelligence, automated testing, and fleet operations. Together, they illustrated how OEMs can accelerate development, unlock new data-driven services, and deploy AI at scale.
Accelerate SOP with Intelligent Test and Validation
On the 2026 Nissan LEAF, Sonatus and NTCE demonstrated how Sonatus Collector AI and Sonatus AI Technician streamline engineering workflows. NTCE is using these tools to accelerate development cycles and improve test coverage — a real-world example of AI transforming vehicle development.
Unlock Vehicle Data with GenAI
A live demo of Sonatus Collector AI showed how technical and non‑technical users can build and deploy data collection policies using natural language. Visitors watched real‑time data streamed from a Hyundai Kona driving around our Sunnyvale HQ — captured on demand based on whatever data the audience asked for using GenAI and natural‑language prompts.
Drive Predictive Maintenance with Tire Wear AI
Around our retrofitted 1970 Ford Bronco EV, we showcased a Michelin tire-wear model deployed via Sonatus AI Director on NXP S32 processors. The result: sensor-less, intelligent tire maintenance and performance, delivered directly at the edge, without cloud dependency.
Maximize Compute for AI and Vehicle Functions
A demonstration of MOTER’s advanced driving analysis, running on Renesas S4 silicon, highlighted how behavioral and contextual insights can support next-generation insurance and safety applications on today’s ECUs — all orchestrated through Sonatus AI Director.
Explore a Growing Ecosystem of In-Vehicle AI Models
An interactive kiosk featured additional Sonatus Director AI partners, including AWS, Arm, NXP, COMPREDICT, Qnovo, and VicOne, and others, showing how OEMs can deploy diverse models across subsystems using a unified platform.
Delight Drivers with Features-on-Demand
In partnership with Bosch Engineering Group, we demonstrated how a software-first E/E architecture, combined with Sonatus Collector AI and Sonatus Updater, enables personalized, feature-on-demand experiences from ideation through deployment to drivers.
Enhance Fleet Operations with Smart Diagnostics
A Class 8 Kenworth truck anchored our commercial fleet showcase, demonstrating how Sonatus AI Technician enables root-cause analysis to reduce downtime and improve operational efficiency across large fleets.
CES 2026 made it clear that AI in vehicles isn’t a future promise. It’s happening now, at scale, with real customers. As we head into the year, we’re carrying this momentum forward, continuing to help OEMs and Tier 1s turn intelligence-driven, software-defined technologies into measurable value across the vehicle lifecycle.