CES begins next week – but never mind – what mattered in 2022? The press releases for next week’s 2023 Consumer Electronics Show are stacking up. These will be featured in blogs over the next week or two. Weird and wacky, teeny-tiny, virtual, augmented, robotic, metaverse-y – remote this-and-that. Invented by young and old, the result of competitions and criteria -- for example, consider Eureka Park. They can be shepherded by organizations like AARP, appear in international exhibits like the Swiss pavilion, the Korean and beyond. For those attending, tennis shoes will be required. But before we dive into the startups next week, here is one more look at 2022 – what was notable during that could/might/will serve and help older adults?
Amazon's Alexa Together was introduced at the very end of 2021 (just over one year ago!) for remote monitoring of older family members. The product name choice was outstanding, even inspired, suggesting that using Alexa – a popular voice interface, made it possible to connect family members and to be aware of issues they might have when home alone. This was one of a series of ‘ambient’ offerings in the market (Vayyar Care, KamiCare, and Origin Wireless, among others). This ambient technology (‘immersed in your surroundings, ready to help without any prompting’) was in contrast with wearables that required the user to do something – press a button to call for help.
AI matters for older adults. Over the last few years, a growing number of applications of AI and machine learning have entered the market of caregiving technology for older adults. Stanford Medicine offers a Partnership in AI-Assisted Care. Projects are underway at the University of Illinois, MIT AgeLab, Georgia Tech, Penn, and no doubt other university programs around the US. AI is a fundamental machine-learning element in voice technology, which is here to stay, despite the noisy racket about Amazon. The AI role in deriving predictive analytics from accumulated data is just beginning to reveal its utility.
MIAMI & FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Care Angel, the leader in AI voice, nurse assistant technology that proactively identifies and addresses care gaps to improve outcomes for whole populations, and Upside, the only fully managed living option for older adults creating a new category of senior living, announce today a partnership to offer a comprehensive health-risk assessment and housing intervention solution to health insurers.
Taking stock of 2022 in AgeTech. We are approaching end of the year – it has been a good one for emerging technologies that can help older adults, today commonly known as AgeTech. The timing is right – as 56 million Americans are now aged 65+, looming older population growth has awakened the sleeping giant. The investor and technology market, historically known for tech ageism, is beginning to wake up to the AgeTech opportunity. Why? As an aging population grows, the supporting labor force for aging services, both in communities and for in-home care, simply isn’t there, lured away by better pay across multiple sectors. What technologies can help mitigate this growing labor crisis in the senior care (home care, home health care, senior living, long-term-care) services market?
In recent years, TV Remote control devices became more usable – except for Apple’s. Rant on. Starting with the older one (“Ridiculously symmetrical and highly unusable”) to the most recent Siri remote – where they give up on usable buttons and enable changing the channel by voice. You gotta love a company with a device so devoid of buttons – and so easily off the rails with an accidental touch. No wonder it makes more sense to talk to it. Meanwhile, many usable TV remote control devices are in the market, including an Apple TV button remote from Function101 and you can also get a button universal remote control – and even one that is back-lit – so you can see the buttons – crazy! Why are these devices called senior remotes? Duh, because they have buttons, which seniors, maybe tired of all the accidentally swiping and zooming they do with their smartphones, just seem comforting and accessible.
Design still needs to include older adults. One might say that there’s nothing left to say about this topic – it’s been said in multiple and sometimes overlapping and confusing ways. You can read about inclusive design, sometimes called design-for-all, accessible design, and universal design. None of these concepts are specific to designing for inclusion of aging adults. And we know that older adults, some not online, are an afterthought when new emergency processes are created. At a recent event, recommendations from design experts were discussed and considered in the context of aging adults. But is the distinction between approaches, in fact, based on history and legal compliance? What should (really, this time!) change?
CES begins next week – but never mind – what mattered in 2022? The press releases for next week’s 
lexa Together 
AI matters for older adults. Over the last few years, a growing number of applications of AI and machine learning have entered the market of 
Taking stock of 2022 in AgeTech. We are approaching end of the year – it has been a good one for emerging technologies that can help older adults, today commonly known as 
In recent years, TV Remote control devices became more usable – except for Apple’s. Rant on. Starting with the older one (“
Design still needs to include older adults. 