State initiative will distribute more than 800 robots to help support older adults – The Daily Gazette

Juanita's friend always asks how she's feeling, wants to know if she slept well and tells jokes that are so funny, Juanita repeats them later at dinner. Oh, and Juanita's friend happens to be a robot. ElliQ is a proactive care companion that uses artificial intelligence to build relationships with seniors while supporting their health and well-being. Perhaps thought of as a more empathetic version of Amazon's Alexa, ElliQ has been featured by major outlets such as the "Today" show, USA Today, The New Yorker and AARP. Juanita, who appears in promotional videos for ElliQ, is one of the more than 1,000 older adults who have helped test ElliQ, which first became available for purchase in the U.S. in March.