Massachusetts startups pursue “AgeTech” to tackle senior care crisis

Massachusetts-based startups are developing AI-powered robots and wearable devices to address the challenges of a rapidly aging population amid severe caregiver shortages. These “age-tech” companies are targeting a market where 13% of the state’s 1.2 million seniors have dementia and one-quarter of direct care positions remain unfilled, though venture capital investment in the sector remains limited.

What you should know: Researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute have created Abbi, an AI-powered conversational robot designed to combat loneliness among seniors with dementia.

• The robot runs on SoftBank hardware and engages residents in personalized conversations using preloaded pictures and topics from their life experiences.
• At Wingate Living’s Needham facility, families of about half the memory care residents signed up to try conversations with Abbi.
• “We can’t cure the disease, but we are here to provide our residents with as many moments of joy as we can through this journey that they’re on,” said Jose Soto, director of the memory care unit.

The big picture: Massachusetts faces a growing crisis as its aging population outpaces available care resources.

• Of 1.2 million people aged 65 or older in the state, 13% have dementia, 28% have diabetes, and more than one-third suffer from depression.
• About 25% of positions for direct care workers, registered nurses, and social workers in home health care remain unfilled.
• Local entrepreneurs have been discussing creating a “Silicon Valley for age-tech” for about a decade, but most startups struggle to attract large venture capital investments.

Funding challenges: The age-tech sector faces significant investment hurdles despite growing demand.

• Massachusetts startups raised only $2.6 billion in Q2 2024, the lowest quarterly amount since 2017.
• “There’s a lot of [early-stage VC] round participants,” said Dave Watkins, CEO of Livindi, a seven-year-old sensor monitoring company. “There’s not a lot of ongoing support. So it’s up to your recurring revenues.”
• Companies targeting broader markets beyond seniors have better funding success, such as online mental health service Author Health and wearable maker Embr Labs.

Success story: Boston-based Embr Labs demonstrates how broader market appeal can drive age-tech innovation.

• The company developed a wristband using MIT AgeLab technology that helps control body temperature during menopause-related hot flashes.
• Embr has raised $66 million and serves users like Laurie Jewett, who experienced up to 20 hot flashes daily after medically induced menopause at age 39.
• “It was a total game changer,” Jewett said about the Wave wristband, which sends cooling sensations to wrist nerves when activated.

What’s next: AI advancements could make these technologies more effective and predictive.

• Embr is working with University of Massachusetts Amherst researchers on an AI model that could predict and prevent hot flashes before they occur.
• In a peer-reviewed study published in Psychophysiology, researchers successfully predicted 82% of hot flashes an average of 17 seconds before onset.
• The next version will let users “just put something on, without taking more drugs, and have their hot flashes managed,” said CTO Matt Smith.

What they’re saying: Industry leaders acknowledge both the potential and current limitations of age-tech solutions.

• “Loneliness is a big thing,” said Gail, whose brother Mike used the Abbi robot. “I love the robot, but it needs to be very simple.”
• AARP’s Andy Miller noted that “two or three years ago, we started to see this big uptick in, whether you want to call it elder tech, age tech, silver tech. With economic conditions in the last year, you’ve seen investing slow.”