AWE2026 Exhibition Structure Undergoes Drastic Changes: Tech Companies Dominate Prime Spots, Innovation Directions Highly Similar to CES

The company intelligence expert "Caixin Finance" learned that as AI and smart hardware have become the core directions of the consumer electronics industry, AWE (Appliance & Electronics World Expo), a benchmark exhibition in China's home appliance and consumer electronics fields that has long been dominated by home appliance products, is undergoing a "transformation."

According to official information, AWE2026 will be held simultaneously at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre and the exhibition area of the Shanghai Eastern Hub International Business Cooperation Zone from March 12th to 15th, 2026. It will adopt the "one exhibition, two zones" model for the first time, with the theme of "AI Technology, Smart Future," comprehensively showcasing cutting - edge intelligent technology achievements, smart life products, and solutions.

Among them, the newly added "Eastern Hub International Business Cooperation Zone (Business Cooperation Zone) Exhibition Area" is positioned as the "Advanced Technology Exhibition Area for Consumer Electronics" of AWE2026. It fully relies on the institutional innovation advantages of the Business Cooperation Zone to build a platform for the release of cutting - edge technologies in the consumer electronics industry and international exchanges.

Judging from the list of exhibitors and the distribution of exhibition areas, compared with 2025 and earlier, AWE2026 is clearly shifting from an exhibition pattern dominated by home appliances to an "AI + Applied Technology + Full - Scenario Ecosystem." Among them, AI and large models have become the biggest growth points, and humanoid robots, chips, and upstream hard technologies have each had their own independent zones for the first time. In addition, smart mobility has become a new cross - border growth point, and a large number of XR and AR - related enterprises have also appeared.

It is worth mentioning that this change is almost identical to that of CES2026. Entering 2026, both exhibitions have started to shift from selling products to "selling AI," and both have made humanoid robots an independent zone, strengthening upstream hard technologies. The potential of traditional consumer electronics is shrinking, and product categories are shifting from single products to full - scenario ecosystems.

The significant increase in the participation of Chinese brands has undoubtedly become another highlight of the above two exhibitions. From robots and AI hardware to cleaning, display, and mobility, Chinese enterprises are leading new tracks at home and abroad.

Drastic Changes in the Structure of Exhibiting Enterprises, Humanoid Robots "Independent"

Compared with the early years when exhibits were concentrated in traditional home appliance categories such as refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners, and kitchen appliances, the exhibition structure of this AWE has been significantly upgraded. Enterprises in the fields of robots, drones, smart hardware, AI terminals, chips, and system software are becoming the new protagonists.

Judging from the currently announced exhibition information, the categories of exhibiting enterprises have completely broken through the pattern centered on home appliances. They widely cover all industrial chain links such as smart hardware terminals, embodied intelligence, low - altitude economy, core chips, large AI models, and operating systems.

Among them, there are leading humanoid robot enterprises such as Unitree Robotics, Magic Atom, and Zhipu Robotics, as well as players in the low - altitude economy such as XPeng Huitian and Autel Robotics. There are also chip manufacturers such as UNISOC and ESW, and AI enterprises such as SenseTime and MINIMAX.

It is reported that in this exhibition, in the "Advanced Technology Exhibition Area for Consumer Electronics" of the Eastern Hub International Business Cooperation Zone, a dedicated independent exhibition area for humanoid robots will be opened, becoming the most eye - catching feature of the exhibition.

It is reported that CES2026 also established an independent exhibition area for humanoid robots for the first time and listed upstream technologies such as large AI models and chips as key sectors. It is not difficult to see that the establishment of an independent exhibition area for humanoid robots is a clear signal of the "transformation" of this AWE and an important step for AWE to catch up with CES.

At the site of this AWE, a group of enterprises focusing on humanoid robots, such as Unitree Robotics, Magic Atom, and Zhipu Robotics, will make a concentrated appearance, displaying products such as bipedal robots, general - purpose service robots, and household companion robots, forming a complete industrial display chain from motion ability, fine operation to scenario implementation.

In addition, the distribution of exhibition booths, investment promotion directions, and exhibition area planning also indicate that AWE2026 is being upgraded from a home appliance display platform to a comprehensive technology exhibition, highly consistent with the full - category and full - industrial - chain nature of CES.

It Has Become the Norm for Big Manufacturers to "Occupy an Entire Hall" in Prime Booths

Judging from the investment promotion list and the layout of the exhibition hall, the "new forces" in technology are not only entering in large numbers but also strongly dominating the prime booths.

Among them, Dreame Technology exclusively occupies the entire Hall E7, creating the largest single - brand exhibition hall in the history of AWE with an area of 7,378 square meters, ranking first in the scale of exhibition booths at the exhibition.

As a traditional home appliance enterprise brand, Haier will make an appearance in the full - ecosystem form of "Haier Smart Home" this time, exclusively occupying the entire Hall N5 to create a dedicated Haier Smart Home exhibition hall of over 5,000 square meters. It will bring its full - brand matrix to build an immersive smart home scenario, becoming the core of the traditional home appliance + smart ecosystem exhibition area.

In addition, Huawei (including HiSilicon) occupies the core booth in Hall W4 with an area of about 3,500 square meters. Ecovacs, Tineco, Roborock, and Midea also occupy the core exhibition area with booth sizes of 3,000 square meters, 2,500 square meters, and 2,500 square meters respectively.

The concentrated investment of leading enterprises and the inclination of prime locations towards the technology ecosystem make AWE closer to an international first - class consumer electronics exhibition in terms of scale and professionalism.

This grand occasion of leading enterprises gathering, large - scale booths clustering, and independent exhibition areas set up in segmented cutting - edge fields is highly similar to the pattern of leading brands dominating the core exhibition halls and segmented technology fields having dedicated displays at the CES exhibition. It not only demonstrates the high recognition of enterprises for the AWE platform but also enables AWE to meet the global consumer electronics display needs.

New Species Make a Concentrated Appearance, Approaching the Innovation Logic of CES

In addition to embodied intelligence and humanoid robots moving from concept to practical application, there are several other highlights worth paying attention to at this AWE.

One is AI smart hardware. Products such as AI mobile phones, AI glasses, smart wearables, and smart home terminals are making a concentrated appearance, with an innovation level comparable to that of CES.

Among them, XREAL, as an independent exhibitor, brings AR glasses products such as Project Aura, connecting to domestic large models to upgrade virtual - reality interaction; Alibaba Qwen AI glasses are equipped with the latest large model, subverting the functional logic of traditional smart glasses and creating a portable AI assistant; ZTE Nubia jointly launches an AI - native mobile phone with ByteDance, implanting the large model into the underlying operating system to achieve full - scenario intelligent services; Enterprises such as Huawei and Haier Smart Home have upgraded their whole - house smart solutions, realizing seamless interconnection and autonomous decision - making of home appliances and household devices, changing from "passive response" to "active service."

Second, enterprises in the core technology layer represented by chips, OS, and large models are emerging in a concentrated manner and occupying key positions in the core technology exhibition area, making up for the underlying shortcomings of the consumer electronics industry, which is highly consistent with the core of CES focusing on underlying technology innovation.

For example, chip enterprises such as UNISOC, ESW, and LingSi bring products such as AI computing power chips, Internet of Things chips, and terminal main control chips, providing core computing power support for smart hardware, robots, and drones; Enterprises such as SenseTime and MINIMAX display self - developed large AI models, promoting the in - depth integration of large models and terminal devices; Enterprises such as MXCHIP focus on the Internet of Things operating system, building the underlying ecosystem for the interconnection of smart devices.

Third, the low - altitude economy and smart mobility are making a fresh appearance. Drones and flying devices are on display together. Enterprises such as XPeng Huitian and Autel Robotics bring consumer - grade drones and low - altitude manned aircraft, expanding the display boundary of AWE from indoor home to mobility and low - altitude fields, further enriching the connotation of consumer electronics.

In addition, judging from the changes in Chinese exhibitor brands, the overlap between AWE2026 and CES2026 has increased significantly. Among them, robots and smart cleaning have become the core overlapping categories, including Ecovacs, Dreame, Roborock, Ninebot, Tineco, Unitree, etc.; AI hardware, smart wearables, and consumer electronics also highly overlap, such as XREAL, AfterShokz, BYD, SenseTime, etc.

It is foreseeable that with the participation of more technology enterprises and the implementation of more cutting - edge categories, AWE will increasingly become an important window to observe China's consumer electronics, smart life, and future technology.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Caixin Finance" (ID: caijingtuya), author: Soda, editor: tuya, published by 36Kr with authorization.