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Most people over the age of 50 now own a smartphone, but it can be difficult to set up the device and understand all its features once you get home.
Instead of asking your kids for help or struggling on your own, what if you could talk to an AI-enabled voice assistant to customize your device and make it more convenient for you?
This was one of the ideas explored during a co-design session between AARP volunteers and Google’s user experience (UX) designers last week. Google sponsored a two-day workshop in Washington, DC to highlight the importance of age-friendly design in the next generation of smartphones and devices.
Volunteers and UX designers work in teams to come up with ideas for how to make technology safer and easier to use, and how devices can improve social connections and improve health and home life (all AARP priorities). I concentrated on that.
“What was really interesting was that Google executives came in to evaluate the team’s pitch and understand how older adults think about the features and functionality of these devices and what their priorities are. It was an eye-opener,” said AARP Director Michael Phillips. strategic partnership.
One volunteer described using the phone while wearing reading glasses and without the reader, explaining that the phone needed to behave differently in each situation. “and, [younger] Designers don’t use readers, so we never thought about it,” Phillips said.
Growing need for technology to support aging
A recent AARP survey found that more than 6 in 10 adults over 50 do not feel that today’s technology is designed with their needs in mind; We are working to change that.
For example, AARP’s AgeTech Collaborative works with startups and venture capitalists to help them design products with older adults in mind.
Last year, AARP held a summit with game developers and industry leaders to encourage them to focus on age-friendly game design. And in recent years, the company has grown its presence at CES (formerly the Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas to raise awareness of the need for age technology, technology that can improve the lives of people over 50.
“Older adults are really embracing technology in all kinds of new and different ways, and AARP is working with technology companies around the world to help seniors… “We’re helping them understand how important technology is.”
As the world’s population ages, technology companies like Google are “seeing both business and social opportunities” and “rising to the challenges,” added Shipley, who served as a judge during the event.
Susan Mrachek, AARP’s Director of Volunteer Engagement, said AARP volunteers are eager to share their voices and appreciate the opportunity to be heard.
“I was talking to a Google facilitator after the workshop, and he said that AARP volunteers were much more engaged and creative than other research groups,” Mrachek said. “She said she does this work all the time, but rarely do individuals share so much or come up with ideas like this.”
Learn more about how AARP is helping seniors improve their digital skills and visit AARP’s Personal Technology Resource Center for tips on how to use the latest technology.
**Content published with permission of AARP and originally published on aarp.org.
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