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Five aging in place technologies from AARP’s LivePitch
Sat, 05/16/2015 - 13:54 - Laurie Orlov
Everybody off the bus -- the last convention for AARP. Last week’s Life@50+ National Event in Miami was reportedly the last time AARP will produce one of these national entertainment-filled conventions with speakers and tracks for all interests and crowds of boomer-and-beyond women (mostly, based on observation) -- volunteering to pack lunches, climbing onto buses, and basking in the Florida sunshine. The health-focused startup Live Pitch event on Thursday heard 4 minutes from the 10 finalists, 2 minutes from five Florida-based startups, and short 1-minute pitches from alternates from each of those. Judges selected Splitsecnd, a portable device-plus-service for automatic vehicle crash tracking (similar to GM's profitable OnStar, but currently vehicle brand-independent). The audience voted for Audicus (for buying lower-priced hearing aids online) and Constant Therapy (a mobile solution to help patients improve brain function after stroke or brain injury.)
Here are five from the combined lists that target the senior market – with another five targeting the boomer smartphone-toting market on Boomer Health Tech Watch. Listed alphabetically, text derived from companies' own websites.
- Alzup. "AlzhUp seeks to improve the quality of life of people with Alzheimer’s by integrating actual memories and scientifically-proven therapies in a single platform, slowing the cognitive decline of the patient, as well as facilitate the active participation of the entire family and care team in the treatment process." Learn more at AlzhUp.com.
- Home for Life Design. "Home for Life is a leader in providing solutions for consumers, healthcare providers, and retailers in the aging in place market. Our innovative home assessment software enables our growing network of therapists and product/service providers to reach homeowners with the ideal solutions for remaining in their home for life." Learn more at homeForLifeDesign.com.
- CarePredict. "CarePredict™ Tempo™ learns the normal activities of your loved one. It tracks daily patterns and records them in a rhythm journal. If there’s ever a change, you get an alert to reach out and it’s easier to see the bigger picture and predict if issues need follow-up." Learn more at CarePredict.com.
- CareSpotter. "CareSpotter helps families find local, professional caregivers for care tasks big and small. Families can search using more than 150 criteria like language, medical experience or even hometown to find the perfect caregiver. Families save up to 50 percent versus agency fees, and they get to choose their own caregiver." Learn more at CareSpotter.com.
- Ollo Wearables. "Controlled by voice, ollo is a wearable 4G smartphone that combines a personal digital assistant with real time health monitoring. We enrich every moment of the day by making communication easy and intuitive, whilst smart monitoring software provides constant peace of mind that all is well." Not yet on market. Learn more at Ollo Wearables.
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Comments
any reason why AARP will stop producing conventions
Hi
Do you know why AARP is not going to produce any more of these types of conventions? Thanks
Regional instead of national
According to knowledgeable parties, they are switching to more regional (versus national) events.
Hi Laurie, I'd be interested
Hi Laurie,
I'd be interested to know if any of these tech companies are actually making money or is it just venture capital. Aside from retirement living, are any business segments in the aging in place sector profitable?
Rob
These companies are all brand new
This blog post was about newly launching companies -- the LivePitch competition was judged by VCs.
'Aside from retirement living' -- that includes independent living.
As for 'aging in place companies' making money, the PERS industry sets the pace for age-specific companies, north of $1 billion revenue annually.
Considering that most seniors will not live in retirement communities, that means that the consumer market and the 'aging in place' market -- home design, tech for home, smart and cell phones, home alarm companies -- are all 'aging in place' markets. It is impossible to separate them out -- and for the companies in the space, it is a mistake, in my view.
Companies just entering the field.
Thank you for your clarification.
You always do a great job. Keep it up. We need you expertise.
Mike