The most innovative consumer electronics companies of 2026

This year’s most compelling consumer electronics innovations are all about making technology more empowering, with fewer annoying compromises. Just look at what AMD is doing with its Ryzen AI Max+ processors, which let users run powerful AI workloads directly on their PCs without internet, or Framework, which is putting those processors in tiny desktops while continuing its mission to make endlessly repairable laptops. Matic Robots is running with the offline AI trend as well, offering a next-gen robot vacuum that maps your home and responds to voice commands without sending that data to the cloud. The theme of democratizing tech also expands to entertainment. Dolby Vision 2, for instance, will bring the benefits of HDR—brighter screens with more vivid colors—to lower-cost TVs, while Ayaneo is expanding the retro gaming market with handhelds in every conceivable shape and size. Samsung, meanwhile, has achieved the holy grail in foldable phones, slimming down the Fold7 to more poc