‘The Future of AI and Older Adults 2023’ now published

Laurie Orlov of Aging and Technology Watch in her latest paper tackles the latest iterations of AI and ML, tracing their roots back to 2014 to the original smart speakers and voice assistance, technologies that enabled older adults to access services with convenience and at reasonable cost. What will be the impact of AI using tools such as large language models (LLM) like ChatGPT to develop improved search, voice assistance, answers to health questions, and care plans written in understandable and empathetic language? For care facilities and senior housing, will they leverage AI with voice and sensor tech to improve safety monitoring for both residents and caregivers, plus the dream of predictive health for residents or those living at home with limited assistance? Will chatbots get a lot smarter versus obnoxious? Find out what both the short term and long term (5+ year) impact could be. 

Ms. Orlov’s somewhat gimlety view includes Gartner’s infamous Hype Cycle chart on page 5. As of today, most AI technologies reside in the balmy Peak of Inflated Expectations, the place where whatever investment funding is going. There’s lots of innovation and kitchen table hackathoning. Looming about two years out is the inevitable Trough of Disillusionment which has already been kicked off by Big Thinkers such as Steve Wozniak. As this Editor observed last month, it is a double-edged sword, with the bad side in its potential for data misuse, fraud, fakery, and malicious action. It’s already created controversy that this Editor predicts will crest in the next year with demands for regulation. We’re not there yet, however.

Download of the PDF is here and free.

DARPA’s $5.1M contract with Kryptowire to develop passive smartphone health monitoring, predictive analytics

[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/washfigure2.jpg” thumb_width=”250″ /]Truly unobtrusive health monitoring on the horizon? The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has contracted with cybersecurity firm Kryptowire to develop a health monitoring and analytics app to assess the health and readiness of warfighters (to us civilians–soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines) especially in the field. The WASH program–Warfighter Analytics using Smartphones for Health–will use the data from smartphone sensors like microphones, cameras, pedometers, thermometers, and accelerometers (see DARPA illustration, left above). Through sensor-based information, physiological and cognitive symptoms can be captured and analyzed.

Based on their information, most of the assessment will be passive rather than actively diagnostic, and with an emphasis on predictive health and a real-time approach to disease detection and biomarker identification. Part of the challenge will be to filter out the ‘noise’–extraneous information also captured by these sensors on a daily and extraordinary basis. Security, of course, is a major concern. (Where better than to award the app development to a cybersecurity company?)

DARPA is fond of commercializing its technologies (remember something called DARPANET?) so this is planned for commercial release in due time. Usage in clinical trials is an area mentioned. One day we may all be wearing smartphones which unobtrusively monitor our health and positive behaviors. (I’ll leave it to our Readers to say Yay or Nay to this notion.)

The award is for $5.1 million. A development timeframe is not mentioned. Business Wire, DARPA WASH page, HealthcareITNews, Daily Mail (which amusingly tries to paint this as a spy program through an ACLU representative quote).