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At the 2020 International CES in Las Vegas this week, Keep Labs will be exhibiting on the show floor as an “Innovation Award Honoree.” Keep Labs, a Canadian cannabis storage product manufacturer for consumers, is the first cannabis company to be given such an award at CES. 

The problem? Keep Labs’ team can’t mention “cannabis” while they’re exhibiting. That dictate would extend to the company’s marketing materials and signage.

The solution? Keep Labs decided not to exhibit at CES this year.

CES issued the following statement to TechCrunch, which originally reported on the conflict: “There are no cannabis or e-cigarette products on the exhibit floor at CES, as the show does not have a category pertaining to that market. Given cannabis is not a category at CES, the company was able to exhibit under the terms they’d showcase their product as a storage device. … Keeps Lab (sic) fit in the Home Appliances category for the Innovation Awards.”

Keep Labs’ locked storage device involves facial recognition, allowing consumers to safely conceal cannabis products in the home—out of sight and away from children, but not totally stashed in the back of a closet. Because it’s a storage product, the company’s co-founder told TechCrunch, the issue over cannabis marketing came as a surprise—especially considering the broader Las Vegas area’s tolerance and abundant acceptance of cannabis messaging.