AgeTech

Most consumers might say that they would appreciate greater tech ease of use.  But is that what they get? The tech industry’s fondness for innovation (see Innovation Awards for 2025) will likely beget ease of use in one gadget (see gesture innovation) – while creating an integration requirement in another.   There will be some intriguing announcements next week, like the winner of Challenge --  The Digital Health for All Award – particularly targeting those with developmental disabilities – seeking greater independence and control of their health. And AARP’s AgeTech Summit will focus making daily tasks and aging easier. Taking a look at the list of startups exhibiting, individually they accomplish the targeted task goal.

What caught our attention in 2024 in the older adult aging and health tech market?  By the end of the year of 2024, heading into CES 2025, AI, or at least the term ‘AI’ has caught the eye of all, from scammers to overpriced startups to overspending investors.   It all is reminiscent of previous years of hysteria over the web, the cloud, voice, and so on.  As we head towards CES 2025, where an enter new class graduates into the booths and brouhaha, here is a look back at 2024’s most notable blog posts:

Each of several recent years, AARP has surveyed older adults about tech use. This year’s report is remarkable – they created a new online survey segment, the 80+ age range.  Responses were not too surprising. There was skepticism about whether tech can enable a healthy life – the percentage dropping among those aged 70+ since last year. Perhaps they know that a healthy life also depends on diet and exercise – and that 40% of Americans 65+ are obese. Remember that only 23% of adults aged 65+ exercise in accordance with federal guidelines.  Those guidelines include 2 days per week of strength training, which helps retain muscle mass, improve balance and reduce risk from falls.  

Older adults will adapt to change and adopt new technology. When an 88-year-old neighbor is filming fireworks with his smartphone, it is easy to see that times have changed. If an affordable technology can be found that meets a personal need (or answers a compelling question with AI), people will find it and get it to work. Remember encyclopedias – we now cannot imagine any process that would again make them useful. Could training be more readily found? Will all devices default to ‘Accessibility’ and security options that you must undo? 

You were not alone at finding the first page of Google search results annoying.  As has been expected, the tech user experience was annoying. There were ads and more ads to scroll past as you looked for a believable answer.  As a result of those ads, the answer seemed, well, somewhat untrustworthy.  But a few months ago, that changed, and for those of you just returning for a search, you will be startled. Asking “what AI is in hearing aids” – a longer answer is provided, with the ads for hearing aids pushed to the right side for those with big screens.  On a phone, these are not visible. No doubt Google is working on that as we speak, though its list of examples, these soon became AI (Gemini) powered paid ads.

Aging baby boomers – the demographic looms large – and their future is likely underserved.  You see it everywhere, baby boomer-focused marketing, articles about their wealth and interests, etc. Yet the 30 million peak boomers also represent a bleak future ‘peak burden.' This Economic Impact study published in April 2024 notes that two-thirds are not prepared for retirement. The details of this study are depressing – about a future that will be financially worse for women than men, in total representing 30 million people who will all be 65+ in six years. On the positive side, according to an AARP survey there is growing interest in technology from the older adult population, particularly in fitness apps. But are useful technologies viewed in combination for the baby boomers’ life and health span? Not yet.