Aging & Social Change: Thirteenth Interdisciplinary Conference

Abstract

In the Nordic countries, there is increasing investment in welfare technologies for the older population as a viable solution to ageing, welfare expenses and under-staffing of care services. The market for smart solutions for the health and safety of older persons, which supports ageing in place, is constantly growing and has already doubled its size from 2017 to 2021. Currently, the private marker of a digital solution for ageing in place is over-populated in the Nordics. However, there are very few companies that develop solutions with an inclusive design approach, and even fewer that involve social and psychological research to test their prototypes to avoid hyper-medicalisation, datafication, and exacerbation of inequalities. This paper details a research project to produce a marketable smart solution in an AI company that develops ambient assisted living for older persons. I describe through an auto-ethnographic perspective what it means to introduce to private tech companies an inclusive design proposal. Based on focus groups and interviews involving funders, developers, public primary care providers, forma caregivers, families and older persons, the analysis shows the challenges and opportunities to develop inclusive technologies in the living lab of a small city placed in South-East Finland. This research considers the role of commercial actors from an insider perspective and initiate a collaborative discussion between entrepreneurs and researchers.