For the last 10 years, the Older Adults Technology Services (OATS) from AARP team has attended the annual tech event called the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) for the multi-billion dollar U.S. consumer technology industry. This year, we expanded our presence at the conference to showcase our own tech knowledge and host live Senior Planet classes from the trade show floor. By teaming up with Discover Live, we brought the thrilling experience of CES directly to older adults across the United States.
On Thursday, January 5, via a live virtual tour, Senior Planet participants heard from seven startups that are a part of AARP’s AgeTech Collaborative and driving innovative advancements in technology to improve the lives of older adults. This curated experience encouraged social interaction and discovery as participants were virtually transported to AARP’s AgeTech Collaborative booth in Las Vegas. Participants heard from digital health startups like Amicus Brain Innovations, which provides creative AI solutions to help those caring for loved ones with dementia, and learned about smart-home tech devices such as Zibrio, a stability and fall-prevention scale created by a former NASA scientist.
On Friday, January 6, the excitement continued with a live Q&A session, co-hosted by OATS Executive Director Tom Kamber and AARP SVP of Innovation & Product Development Andy Miller. Kamber and Miller discussed their favorite cutting-edge technologies from CES 2023, including an intelligent electric-powered Smart Walker and the world’s first tabletop gaming platform. Senior Planet participants had the opportunity to attend virtually and ask questions.
“Discover Live is the pioneer and expert in virtually bringing the excitement of live, world travel, and amazing events like CES directly to our audiences, no matter where they may be,” said Jason Wei, Founder and CEO of Discover Live. “Our live, virtual experiences mean many more older adults have the opportunity to see places and things that would otherwise be a challenge. The future of aging better in the modern world lies in technology, and we are proud of this collaboration to support the ongoing development of AgeTech products, making the lives of older adults more meaningful and fulfilling.”
“Discover Live offered us an exciting new way to bring virtual experiences to Senior Planet participants,” said Tom Kamber, Executive Director of OATS from AARP. “Their slogan is ‘Experience Anywhere,’ and their idea is that we can all be experiencing new and innovative things, even from the comfort of our homes or wherever we may be traveling to by participating in these virtual travel experiences. This gave us a chance to share all of the exciting things that we were seeing at CES—ranging from massage chairs to artificial intelligence to smart-home devices. We’re giving people a chance to learn about it, comment on it, ask questions, and help the team at Senior Planet think strategically about how we can help older people use these emerging technologies.”
“Our aim is to highlight solutions that are having a societal impact on the lives of older adults,” said Andy Miller, SVP of Innovation & Product Development at AARP. “Today, you can essentially find the best next gadget for anything. AARP’s AgeTech Collaborative is focused on figuring out how to shine a light on things that are going to create real transformative solutions to aging better in the modern world. Right now, we’re collectively working with big companies and tech investors to drive these solutions that we desperately need as we move forward to care for everyone, and technology has to be the answer.”
For a full review of technology seen at CES 2023, read our article on the Senior Planet website.
Pictured: OATS Executive Director Tom Kamber, AARP CEO JoAnn Jenkins, and AARP COO Scott Frisch at AARP’s AgeTech Collaborative booth at CES 2023.