CES is always a fantastic place to get an early peek into the future of smart home tech, and some of this year’s most exciting new developments were in the field of coffee-making. Making coffee is fundamentally a very simple process, but even small changes can have a big impact on flavor, so it’s a field that’s ripe for experimentation and it’s no surprise that several companies have blended AI into their machines to create precisely personalized brews.
We’ve also seen some interesting takes on water tech, with a brewer that uses water condensed from the air, and another that foregoes a traditional boiler in favor of a precisely-controlled piston.
Some of these machines are only proofs of concept, but others are consumer-grade products available to pre-order, and could be sitting in your kitchen later this year, so grab a cookie and check our the best coffee makers and other brewing gadgets from CES 2025.
1. An espresso machine that never needs filling
Definitely one of the strangest coffee gadgets from CES 2025, the KaraPod is an espresso maker with a water tank that never needs to be topped up. Instead, it works like a dehumidifier, condensing and collecting water from the air in your home. This water is cleaned and purified using a combination of heat, UV light, and replaceable filters – the same system that its manufacturer Karawater uses in its Karapure 2 condensing water dispenser.
Although I like coffee, and I like preventing build-up of condensation on my windows in the winter, I’m not sure how I feel about combining the two. I drink tap water all the time, but there’s something weirdly personal about consuming water entirely from your own house. Knowing that part of your morning espresso is water that evaporated from the socks on your clothes airer, and some of it came from last night’s shower is a bit unsettling.
2. A home barista with no boiler
Here’s another interesting coffee machine that claims to brew drinks with the precision of a world-class barista: the REAL9 FIT from Zeroth Law doesn’t rely on pressure from something as primitive as a water boiler. Instead, it uses a long piston and stepped motor to create exactly the right amount of force to extract a shot. The advantage is that every shot should turn out exactly the same, with no manual skill required.
The disadvantage is that you’ll need not just deep pockets, but also an incredibly deep counter; the size of the piston means the REAL9 FIT is at least twice as long as anything in our roundup of the best espresso machines. Better upgrade your kitchen first.
3. A lightning-fast cold brewer
It wasn’t all espresso at CES 2025, there was good news for cold brew fans as well. Cold brew coffee is refreshing and smoother than regular drip coffee, but preparing it the traditional way is a slow process, requiring at least half a day for a good extraction. That’s where the little AstroBrew machine comes in, promising to deliver you an authentic cup of cold brew in just five minutes.
Some of the best Nespresso machines can create a type of cold brew using specialized pods, but the AstroBrew uses regular ground coffee instead, so you can use your favorite beans. Rather than steeping the coffee overnight, the AstroBrew uses “a combination of pressure, turbulence, and recirculation” to achieve the same TDS (total dissolved solids) you’d get with conventional cold brewing. It certainly sounds promising, and anything that doesn’t require me to do too much thinking immediately before bed is a winner in my books.
4. An AI coffee maker that ‘learns’ what you like
Predictably, AI was the hot buzzword at CES 2025, in everything from phones to air fryers. Coffee machines were no exception, and one of the most impressive examples on the show floor was the Midea Barista Brew system, which uses AI to ‘learn’ your taste preferences, and can prepare drinks accordingly. Think of it a bit like a Nest smart thermostat, but for hot beverages.
The machine shows a flavor profile map including properties like citrus and honey notes, and the machine can alter the coffee grind size, water temperature, and extraction time depending on your choices, changing the taste of your drink without changing the beans or adding anything. You can save your preferences to your profile – no more forgetting to reset the grinder after your partner has made their drink and getting a disappointing coffee in the morning.
5. A robot cat to cool your americanos
A cute novelty rather than something for coffee nerds, the Nékojita FuFu from Yukai Engineering is a little cat-shaped device that clips onto the side of your cup and uses an internal fan to ‘blow’ across your coffee or soup, cooling it to your preferred drinking temperature. It was created during a company hackathon, during which one team member recalled spending so much time blowing on his small child’s food, he became dizzy.
Calling the FuFu a robot seems like a bit of a stretch, but its randomized breathing modes are quite fun, including ‘The Princess’ (described as elegant, slow and steady breaths that increase in strength) and ‘Look at That!’ (which gradually increases in strength “as if it’s captivated by how the food looks”).
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