Back Market brought Durability & Repairability back into Conversation at CES

While the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2026 floor was filled with the latest gadgets, a “Slow Tech Awakening” was happening just down the street. Back Market, the leading refurbished marketplace, challenged the industry’s focus on annual upgrades, sparking a critical conversation on the ‘upgrade’ economy and the environmental toll of fast tech.

The event served as a stark contrast to the main convention.

Fast Tech v/s Right To Repair

To understand the debate at CES, we must define the three pillars of the modern repair movement:

1. What is Fast Tech?

Mirroring the “fast fashion” industry, it’s the business model of producing low-cost, short-lived electronic devices designed for rapid replacement, relying heavily on constant marketing of minor “innovations” to encourage consumers to discard functional devices. This cycle is a primary driver of the global e-waste crisis.

2. What is Planned Obsolescence?

A core component of the fast tech model is planned obsolescence. This is a strategy where products are intentionally designed with a limited useful life. This can be:

• Physical: Using glued-in batteries or soldered components that make repair impossible.
• Digital: Pushing software updates that slow down older hardware, removes existing features, making future updates incompatible with existing capable hardware.

3. What is the Right to Repair?

The Right to Repair is a legislative and consumer movement advocating for the ability to fix owned products. It requires manufacturers to provide original parts, repair manuals, and diagnostic tools to both consumers and independent shops. The movement argues that true ownership includes the right to maintain and fix your devices.

The “Slow Tech Awakening” at CES 2026

The event, titled “Enough Already!! How America Got Trapped in the Upgrade Economy,” moderated by journalist and investor Molly Wood, featured a panel of experts including Elizabeth Chamberlain (Director of Sustainability at iFixit) and Sandra Goldmark (Associate Dean and Professor at Columbia Climate School).

The discussion shifted the focus from what’s new to what lasts. Key takeaways included:

• Design is Destiny: Repairability is determined at the design phase. If a device isn’t built to be opened, it’s disposable from day one.
• Climate Impact: Extending the life of current devices delivers faster carbon reduction than any “green” manufacturing of new products.
• The Economic Upside: The refurbished tech market is now a multi-billion dollar industry, proving that durability is a viable business model.

Cultural Accountability: The “Worst in Show”

Back Market didn’t just talk policy; they brought visual proof of the crisis. The event featured the U.S. premiere of Dandora, a documentary tracing the journey of Western e-waste to Kenya. (The full 17min Documentary is available on Back Market’s Youtube channel)

Additionally, Back Market and iFixit hosted the “Worst in Show” awards, where attendees voted on the least repairable products launched at CES this year.

“Slow Tech” is the Future of Innovation?

“Americans are waking up to the reality that the upgrade cycle delivers frustration, not progress,” said Joy Howard, Chief Marketing Officer at Back Market.

With a valuation of nearly $5 billion, Back Market’s success suggests that slow tech, which prioritizes durability, repairability, and refurbishment, is no longer a niche hobby for the environmentally conscious, but a robust and necessary evolution of the global tech market.

Thibaud Hug de Larauze, CEO and co-founder of Back Market, believes the tide is turning. He claims – we have been pushed into believing that the fastest upgrade or the latest product hype is the best tech decision, but that system is finally being questioned.

The following coverage was sponsored by Back Market