Federal Contractors | Technology 2023: GARY J. SHAPIRO

A lawyer, lobbyist and New York Times bestselling author, Shapiro runs CES, the world’s largest consumer technology trade show. Held in Las Vegas each January, the trade event, formerly known as the Consumer Electronics Show, is the industry’s premier event for introducing new technologies and products.

The pandemic caused disruptions to every in-person event, forcing the 56-year-old CES to be held virtually in 2021 and as a hybrid event in 2022. In January, though, the show returned in full force with a revamped format that included more hand-sanitizing stations and free masks, and Shapiro exclaimed in his LinkedIn column, where he has more than 300,000 followers, “CES is back!” While still below its typical crowd of 150,000 attendees, the conference jumped almost threefold from 2022 to 120,000 attendees this year, with 3,200 exhibitors.

A Binghamton University and Georgetown Law graduate, Shapiro has led the CTA, an industry association representing nearly 1,400 consumer tech companies, since 1991. He has written opinion pieces for The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal and is a bestselling author of business books, including “Ninja Future: Secrets to Success in the New World of Innovation.”