The promise of artificial intelligence was front and center at CES, but a coalition of consumer and privacy advocates used the trade show this week to spotlight products they said misuse that technology. The annual contest that highlights “Worst in Show” targets devices judges described as invasive, wasteful or fragile, including AI features in refrigerators and doorbell cameras, and always-on desk companions marketed for remote work.
Samsung’s “Bespoke AI Family Hub” refrigerator received the overall “Worst in Show” recognition. The company’s refrigerator invites users to speak to the appliance to command it to open or close its door, but advocates said a demonstration at CES showed reliability problems when there was too much ambient noise. Gay Gordon-Byrne of the Digital Right to Repair Coalition, speaking in a recorded video ceremony announcing the anti-awards, said the device’s extra complexity made it “Everything is an order of magnitude more difficult.”
Gordon-Byrne also pointed to the refrigerator’s computer-vision approach. She said the fridge can track when food items are running low and advertise replacement options, adding complications to an appliance that is expected to do a straightforward task: keep food cold. Samsung responded that “a trade show floor is naturally very different from a consumer’s home environment,” and said its Bespoke AI features are designed to simplify home decisions and make life more convenient and enjoyable. The company added that “security and privacy are foundational” to the AI experiences in the fridge.
The organizers said the judges have no affiliation with CES or the trade group that runs the show. They said choices are based on how uniquely bad a product is, the impact it could have if widely adopted, and whether it is significantly worse than previous versions of similar technology. They said the judges represent groups including Consumer Reports, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and right-to-repair advocates iFixit.
In interviews tied to the awards, iFixit’s director of sustainability, Elizabeth Chamberlain, said the group “definitely intend[s] some shame.” Chamberlain said the effort is intended as an impetus for manufacturers to improve, while also saying the judges were pointing to broader industry trends and could have selected an entire category rather than a single product.
Privacy advocates used the awards to criticize Amazon’s Ring doorbell system. Cindy Cohn, executive director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said new Ring features won “Worst in Show” for privacy for “doubling down on privacy invasion and supporting the misconception that more surveillance always makes us safer.” Cohn said one new capability, an “AI Unusual Event Alert,” is intended to detect unexpected people or happenings, with the example of alerts for the arrival of a “pack of coyotes.”
Cohn also said the Ring upgrades include facial recognition and “mobile surveillance towers” deployable at parking lots and other places. She said the features also include an app store meant to allow people to develop “even sketchier apps” for the doorbell beyond those Amazon already provides. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Another “Worst in Show” winner targeted a desk companion that uses surveillance-style signals. The contest’s “People’s Choice” winner was Ami, an AI companion made by Chinese company Lepro, which mostly sells lamps and lighting technology. Ami appears as a female avatar on a curved screen marketed as “your always-on 3D soulmate,” designed for remote workers seeking private and “empathetic” interactions while working from home. Advocates said the device tracks eye movements and other emotional signals, including tone of voice.
The group said it was calling out Lepro “for having the audacity to suggest that an AI video surveillance device on a desk could be anyone’s soulmate.” Advocates acknowledged the device includes a physical camera shutter but said its “always-on” marketing left them unsettled. Lepro did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Other anti-awards focused on disposability and security. Lollipop Star, a candy product that plays music while it is eaten, won “Worst in Show” for the environment. Nathan Proctor, who directs the Public Interest Research Group’s right-to-repair campaign, said “We need to stop making so many disposable electronics,” citing the environmental and materials impacts of electronics that are discarded rather than repaired or reused. The awards cited that the Lollipop Star sticks can’t be recharged or reused once the candy is gone, and a spokesperson for maker Lava Brand did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
For security, the judges gave “Worst in Show” to Merach’s internet-connected treadmill. The device advertises an AI chatbot fitness coach powered by a large language model, which can converse with a user and proactively adjust speed and incline based on heart-rate changes. Advocates said concerns stem not just from biometric data collection and behavioral inferences but also from privacy policy language stating: “We cannot guarantee the security of your personal information.” Merach did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
German company Bosch received two “Worst in Show” awards as well, one tied to a “Personal AI Barista” espresso machine that adds subscriptions and Amazon’s Alexa voice assistance, and another tied to a purported anti-theft and battery lock feature connected to an e-bike app. Cory Doctorow, author of “Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It,” criticized Bosch’s “parts pairing,” describing how Bosch digitally connects e-bike parts such as motors and batteries and flags parts if they appear on a stolen products database. Bosch disputed the characterization, saying in a statement Thursday that its approach to privacy and cybersecurity centers on trust and relies on encryption and authentication to protect against unauthorized tampering or control.
AI-driven devices and surveillance-adjacent marketing were recurring themes across this year’s list, as judges described multiple products as adding data capture, complexity or fragility where simpler design could have sufficed. The awards were announced in Las Vegas.