Closeup of LCE team: Checking out the latest new products at the Consumer Electronics Show 2026 are product development engineers, Cash McCormick and Aiko Sherman; along with production manager, Amy Archipov; CEO, Anita Baranowski; and president, Rob Baranowski.
The 59th Consumer Electronics Show highlighted the theme of “Innovators Show Up” and that’s what the team at Left Coast Engineering did, bringing some of their product development team to technology’s largest trade show in the world.
Escondido-based Left Coast Engineering has developed more than 250 new products into production, since 1999 and has been covering ground at this show, each year, for more than a decade. It is hosted annually in Las Vegas the first week of January. This year’s attendance was notably the most crowded since COVID prevented it from happening in 2021.
With more than 148,000 attendees and 4,100 booths to try and see, LCE’s team covered a collective 130 miles on foot in a few days to seek out the latest technologies and newest products. Although on the last day, the team did try out the Zoox driverless robo-taxi to get back to their starting point.
During the whirlwind visit, the LCE engineers and support team saw cutting-edge robotics, including lots of floor cleaners, pool cleaners and lawn mowers, and even the new ClutterBot aimed at picking up toys and items from the floor, so the floor cleaners can do their job. That’s right – a robot to clear the clutter so another robot can clean the floor.
While there was a focus on the next iteration of artificial intelligence, industry analysts noted that these advances reflect years of machine learning and artificial intelligence development that is finally reaching consumer affordability. The integration of computer vision, machine learning algorithms, and sophisticated sensor arrays has enabled these devices to start moving beyond simple programmed patterns of machine learning to genuine environmental understanding and adaptive behavior.
But there was also a renewed effort in launching hardware products that solve problems. In all, there were more than 1200 startup companies, including several from San Diego: Hapware with its glasses technology to interpret non-verbal social responses into haptic feedback cues for those with vision-impairment and more; Babba’s new bottle technology for baby care; Comma.ai with its advanced driver assistance technology; and Thaasa Inc. with its Sunflower air quality monitor.
Rob with Radio Shack sign -The iconic red “R” means Radio Shack is back, as a brand. Since LCE is in the original Radio Shack building in Escondido, Rob Baranowski couldn’t resist taking a photo there.
San Diego’s presence at CES 2026 reflects the region’s emergence as one of North America’s fastest-growing innovation hubs. Ranking ninth in the U.S. for startup ecosystems, San Diego has a world-class biotech/life sciences cluster, defense technology expertise, and robust university partnerships with UC San Diego (UCSD), University of San Diego (USD) and San Diego State University (SDSU).
Both Hapware and Babba grew out of support from the Techstars powered by SDSU program, which provides mentorship and resources for start-ups in the San Diego area.
Hapware won $25,000 for CTA Eureka Park Accessibility Contest with their technology that empowers people who are blind or neurodivergent to better navigate social interactions at school, work and home. Their prize also provided them a free booth at CES, along with other exposure. Their patent-pending haptic feedback wristband ALEYE and smart glasses help translate non-verbal social signals, such as facial expressions, body language, and emotional sentiment, into intuitive vibration patterns that are delivered real-time and subtly to support successful social engagement.
Backed by the Techstars accelerator and featured at San Diego Startup Week, Escondido-based Babba represents the type of practical innovation that resonates with consumers facing everyday problems. Babba’s new baby bottle cooler and warmer product shows promise as a breakthrough in infant care technology. The device’s dual-function capability—cooling milk or formula to refrigerator temperatures and then warming it to body temperature within minutes—eliminates the need for ice packs, insulated bags, and separate warming devices. For sleep-deprived parents managing nighttime feedings, Babba’s smartphone app allows them to schedule automatic warming, ensuring bottles reach the perfect temperature by the time babies wake.
While Tesla and traditional automakers dominated headlines with multibillion-dollar self-driving initiatives, Comma has carved out a unique position by offering sophisticated driver assistance technology as an aftermarket solution. Comma.ai focuses on making a machine-learning solution that uses artificial intelligence for features like lane assist, adaptive cruise control, 360-degree vision and lane changes in an open-source platform that works across a huge variety of car models. The company’s presence at CES 2026 underscored the continuing evolution of transportation solutions that augment rather than replace human decision-making.
Thaasa Inc’s story is a unique one. Founded by a La Jolla Country Day high school senior, Matthew Dubois, Thaasa has introduced the Sunflower air quality monitor, in a growing smart home health movement at CES 2026. Dubois brought two of his teachers, who believe in his design and entrepreneurship, to help man the booth. The small puck-size Sunflower unit uses a sophisticated sensor array, capable of detecting particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, and other airborne pollutants. But what Thaasa says distinguishes Sunflower from competitors is its emphasis on actionable insights rather than raw data. The system doesn’t simply report air quality metrics; it provides specific recommendations for improvement, from adjusting ventilation to identifying pollution sources.
Beyond the local SD tech eco-system, Left Coast Engineering’s engineers found a few favorite new products that support health and wellness.
Glidance says their Glide assistive technology leverages cutting-edge AI, sensors and robotics technology that is purpose-built for blind and low vision mobility. With two wheels touching the ground and an adjustable telescoping handle, Glide physically guides the user through both familiar and new environments. This is modern replacement for the white cane.
Silicon Valley-based Echovision by Agiga displayed smart glasses that support the blind and low-vision community with detailed audio descriptions about what they are viewing. They offer live descriptive assistance, hands-free remote assistance to the user, and open-ear Bluetooth audio.
San Carlos, CA-based Earflo has a new method for children to help clear their ears by drinking from a specially designed cup. Their research has shown success in giving gentle relief for little ears, reducing the number of children who need tubes surgically implanted.
The Smart Hip Guardian, made by Briggs Health Solutions, is a wearable, smart-sensing belt that deploys small airbags to prevent hip injury in sudden falls. The company says the cushion deploys 2/10ths of a second before impact, reducing the impact by 84%. It also alerts emergency services of the fall.
All of these new products had the opportunity to be judged for Innovation Awards at the Consumer Electronics Show. These awards look for ground-breaking consumer technologies that are the best, most-promising products in 36 categories. Entries are judged by private industry. Left Coast Engineering’s founder and president, Rob Baranowski is one of the Innovation judges, and has been for several years. Baranowski noted: “The key criteria in reviewing and considering these technology submissions is whether they are truly innovative or just another generation of an existing technology.” Each year, Baranowski judges 50-100 new products.
Left Coast Engineering is located in the old Radio Shack building at 810 S. Escondido Boulevard, in Escondido. For that reason, it was a fun stop to see that Radio Shack has a presence in CES with a variety of radios and electronic products with the iconic branding they are now marketing from South America with distribution in Florida.
The show always has some of LCE’s engineering design clients, who were at CES to launch their latest products and technologies. Baranowski added, “Since the LCE team operates mostly as the wizards behind the curtain to support our clients in successful product development, we can’t share those clients. However, our team enjoyed seeing the fruits of their labor, in action!”
Left Coast Engineering focuses on custom electronic and mechanical product design to solve problems, supporting both bandwidth and expertise needs for other companies. LCE’s forte is in design-for-manufacturability (DFM) in hardware, software, RF/wireless, power electronics, fluidics, sensors, machine learning, mechanical, optics, low-volume builds and much more. It supports product development for commercial, industrial, medical and government applications. Left Coast Engineering is a dba of Park-Tours, Inc. which developed the very first web-enabled app in 1999—including complex algorithms that featured some of the first location-aware technologies.
1. Sunflower, Matt Dubois talking to CES attendee: La Jolla Country Day high school senior, Matthew Dubois, explains his latest invention– the Sunflower air quality monitor. Two of his teachers came along to support his booth efforts.
Babba – Chelsey and Dan Evans brought their Escondido-based BABBA to CES2026, showcasing their problem-solving baby bottle warming and cooling technology.
Left Coast Engineering CEO Anita Baranowski tried on the lightweight Smart Hip Guardian belt, which deploys small airbags to prevent injury when a fall is detected.
Zoox Robotaxi – LCE president Rob Baranowski got to try out the Zoox robotaxi to get around the congested Las Vegas streets at the Consumer Electronics Show.
