As more doctors and nurses leave the profession, providers are turning to AI technology to help bridge the coverage gap, especially among older Americans. Technology is changing the way we live, especially for older adults who face various challenges in their daily lives. From social isolation to mobility issues, seniors need solutions that can help them stay healthy, safe and connected. Here are five products that use artificial intelligence, robotics and sensors to improve the quality of life for older adults. CLICK TO GET KURT'S FREE CYBERGUY NEWSLETTER WITH SECURITY ALERTS, QUICK VIDEO TIPS, TECH REVIEWS, AND EASY HOW-TO'S TO MAKE YOU SMARTER Ryan is an AI-enabled socially assistive robot by DreamFace Technologies designed to engage in personalized conversations, improving cognitive function and emotional well-being for older adults.

What are the strongest days of the week? Saturday and Sunday, because the rest are weak (week)days. This "dad joke" and other conversational gems were delivered recently by a lauded AI-powered robot called ElliQ at the Ramat Gan headquarters of Intuition Robotics, an Israeli HRI (human–robot interaction) company that developed the machine as a robotic social companion for aging people. ElliQ was in testing and development for about five years before its commercial launch four months ago. The robot, named after a Norse goddess, was created to engage and interact with elderly people and keep them active and connected to the outside world as they age independently.

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.

Powered by AI, ElliQ is a voice-operated robotic care companion designed to foster independence and provide support for older adults. About 1 in 4 adults 65 and older are considered to be socially isolated, putting them at increased risk for a wide range of health conditions, from dementia to heart disease and stroke. Many don't have family and friends who live nearby or visit regularly; and the number of professional caregivers is failing to keep up with demand as the U.S. population ages. Responding to the need, the New York State Office for the Aging announced Wednesday that it is partnering with Intuition Robotics to bring an AI robotic care companion into the homes of 800 older adults as part of the state's efforts to battle social isolation and support aging in place. NYSOFA is working with local offices for the aging and other partners to identify older adults who would most benefit from ElliQ by Intuition Robotics, which the Israeli company describes as first-ever proactive and empathetic AI robotic care companion.

Intuition Robotics announced today that it is expanding its mission of improving the lives of older adults to include enhancing their interactions with their physicians. The Israeli startup has developed the AI-based, award-winning proactive social robot ElliQ which has spent over 30,000 days in older adults' homes over the past two years. Now ElliQ will help increase patient engagement while offering primary care providers continuous actionable data and insights for early detection and intervention. The very big challenge Intuition Robotics set up to solve was to "understand how to create a relationship between a human and a machine," says co-founder and CEO Dor Skuler. Unlike a number of unsuccessful high-profile social robots (e.g., Pepper) that tried to perform multiple functions in multiple settings, ElliQ has focused exclusively on older adults living alone.

Dor Skuler is the co-founder and CEO of Intuition Robotics, a company redefining the relationship between humans and machines. They build digital companions including ElliQ – the sidekick for happier aging which improves the lives of older adults. Intuition Robotics is your fifth venture. What inspired you to launch this company? Throughout my career, I've enjoyed finding brand new challenges that are in need of the latest technology innovations.

Israeli robotics startup Intuition Robotics has raised $36 million in a series B round of funding co-led by Sparx Group and OurCrowd, with participation from Samsung Next, Toyota AI Ventures, Bloomberg Beta, iRobot, Sompo Holdings, Union Tech Ventures, Happiness Capital, and Capital Point. Founded in 2015, Intuition Robotics is creating what it calls "social companion" robots and related technologies, with an initial focus on reducing loneliness and isolation in elderly people. The company's first product was a $1,500 robot called ElliQ that opened for preorders last January and has accumulated "over 10,000 days" in homes across the U.S., though the company hasn't revealed specific sales figures. The majority of ElliQ's users are between 80 and 90 years of age. ElliQ more closely resembles a desk lamp than a humanoid, and it sits on a small dock with a tablet screen and cameras.

Vehicle manufacturers know that they need to invent in autonomous technologies if they want to continue to remain relevant. As such, it should be no surprise that many car companies are investing in AI technologies to keep themselves competitive and relevant. Interviewed on an AI Today podcast episode, Jim Adler, Founding Managing Director of Toyota AI Ventures shared insights into the sort of investments Toyota AI Ventures is making in the industry, how the automotive industry is benefiting from these investments, and what non-automotive related AI and ML investments they are making. Founded in 2017, Toyota AI Ventures raised a $100 million fund to invest in artificial intelligence, cloud-based data, and robotics that may also leverage AI and cloud-based data. Toyota AI Ventures is a subsidiary of the Toyota Research Institute and helps AI ventures around the world to bring new artificial technology to the market.

Humanoid robots are a familiar trope in popular culture, but is making machines look like us a little bit creepy and even potentially dangerous? Whether it is Isaac Asimov's robotics novels, 1980s movie character Johnny 5, Hollywood's Avengers: The Age of Ultron or Channel 4's sci-fi drama Humans, there has long been a fascination in popular culture with robots becoming sentient - beings that can experience feelings and human-like consciousness. But how realistic - and desirable - is the prospect of robots that become almost indistinguishable from humans? Dr Ben Goertzel, who developed the AI software for Sophia, a social humanoid robot made by Hong Kong-based Hanson Robotics, believes robots should look like humans to help "break down suspicions and reservations people might have" about interacting with them. "You will have humanoid robots because people like them," he tells the BBC.

In this episode, Audrow Nash interviews Dor Skuler, CEO and co-founder of Intuition Robotics, about a socially assistive robot for older adults named ElliQ. Skuler discusses the motivation for ElliQ, how it infers context and changes its behavior accordingly, and how ElliQ adapts its behavior over time. Below is a video that shows what interactions with ElliQ look like. Dor Skuler has co-founded five ventures, the most recent being Intuition Robotics. Skuler holds an MBA and Master's of Science in Marketing from Temple University, has co-authored'Cloud Computing: Business Trends and Technologies' published by Wiley in 2016 and holds board level advisory and director roles for several telecoms, cyber security and tech-led social impact ventures.