CES 2017 is done for the year, but the gaming company Razer is going home a little lighter than they intended. It seems that two ‘Project Valerie’ laptop prototypes were stolen from the company’s CES booth.
Project Valerie was one of the standouts from this year’s how (even if I thought it a bit silly) so it only makes sense that other companies want to copy what they were doing.
Hell, there are entire halls at CES that features clear knockoffs and ripoffs from the things that were big in prior years, now done by unknown Chinese companies.
What is brazen in this case is that the prototypes were stolen from the booth in broad daylight on Sunday, the final day of the show. While CES is open on Sunday, most booths spend a good portion of the day packing up and slowly tearing down their displays.
This also isn’t the first time that Razer has dealt with stolen prototypes, and CEO Liang Tan has refused to rule out corporate spying (something I had to explain was a very real thing to some of our new staff at the show) stating:
“We treat theft/larceny, and if relevant to this case, industrial espionage, very seriously – it is cheating, and cheating doesn’t sit well with us. Penalties for such crimes are grievous and anyone who would do this clearly isn’t very smart.”
In a statement released to gaming website Polygon the company detailed the theft and offered up a reward for information:
“This note is to confirm that two Razer Project Valerie laptop prototypes were stolen from the Razer booth at CES. The product was taken from the Razer press room at approximately 4 p.m. on Sunday, January 8, 2017. A $25,000 reward is being offered for original information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of a criminal suspect.
Razer, in its sole discretion, will decide who is entitled to a reward and in what amount. Razer may pay only a portion of the maximum reward offered. The decision will be based primarily upon law enforcement’s evaluation of the value of the information provided. When there are multiple claimants, the reward will be shared in amounts determined by Razer. Razer associates are not eligible for the reward.
This reward offer is good for one year from the date it is first offered, unless extended by Razer. Information about the theft can be sent to [email protected]. Razer will not publicly disclose material that it receives or details about respondents, except to those persons with whom Razer is directly working to resolve this matter or as may be required by law.”
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