Lego launches responsive Smart Brick system at CES

• Key takeaways:

• Lego has announced Smart Play, a responsive system built around a tiny Smart Brick with sensors, speaker and wireless charging.
• The Smart Brick uses accelerometers, light and sound sensors, a mini speaker and communicates via copper coil, magnetic fields and Bluetooth.
• The system launches in March 2026 and debuts in three Star Wars sets featuring Smart Minifigures such as Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader.
• Lego plans ongoing updates and broader rollouts beyond the initial sets.

What is Lego Smart Play?

Lego Smart Play is a platform of interactive elements — the Smart Brick, square Tags and selected Minifigures — designed to make physical builds react to play in real time. Lego calls the technology "ground-breaking" and says the Smart Brick houses a custom chip "measuring smaller than a standard Lego stud."

The company says the platform enables bricks and figures to light up and make sounds in response to movement and nearby pieces. Lego pitches the system as enabling more exploratory and imaginative storytelling.

How the Smart Brick works

Inside each Smart Brick are sensors and an onboard synthesiser driving a miniature speaker. The components include accelerometers, light and sound sensors that detect interaction and trigger audio-visual responses.

Pieces communicate using a mix of contactless techniques: copper coil, magnetic fields and Bluetooth. Lego describes these methods as "invisible" technologies integrated into standard-sized bricks and Tags so they behave like regular Lego in builds.

The bricks charge wirelessly on a bright yellow dock, removing exposed ports and keeping the look and feel familiar.

First features and Star Wars integration

Lego confirmed that Smart Play will arrive in March 2026 and the first products will be included in three Star Wars sets. Fans can expect Smart features such as lightsaber hums for the Smart Minifigures of Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker, engine roars for an A-wing, and even The Imperial March triggered by an Emperor Palpatine figure.

Lego says it will expand the system with "new updates, launches and technology," suggesting additional themes and compatible pieces across future sets.

Why it matters

Smart Play marries classic tactile Lego building with embedded electronics to create hybrid play experiences that respond to user actions. For collectors and children it adds audio and light cues without requiring a phone app or visible modules.

As Smart Brick rolls out, questions remain about battery life, durability and backward compatibility with existing Lego collections. Lego’s CES reveal sets expectations for a broader move into responsive, connected toys during 2026.