For many adults, they’ve had the means and ability to do whatever they wanted to do. As they age, they do not have this freedom due to health and/or finances yet there is still a strong desire to stay independent. In addition, many people are challenged by how to take care of their aging parents who often live in another city. While mobile phones and apps such as Facebook and Facetime have been great helping families stay connected, there is much more that can be done to help seniors stay independent.
State Farm Alexa Skill
One solution is an Amazon Alexa skill being developed by State Farm an insurance company. The skill will allow owners of Amazon Echo Show devices to share alerts and check-ins so adult children and caregivers can know that their relatives are safe and in the right place. The skill is currently in testing and will be released later in 2020.
While at first it may seem a little unusual for an insurance company to develop an Alexa skill, the company’s mission statement shows a bigger vision than just selling insurance – “The mission of State Farm is to help people manage the risks of everyday life, recover from the unexpected, and realize their dreams”.
The project was started by Mark Oakley, a vice president at State Farm. Mark states that “Through this work, we’re able to provide a new, innovative offering that could improve the quality of life and care for seniors and help give their family members added peace of mind,” “We are committed to helping life go right, and this unique voice solution will enhance our ability to do so right from peoples’ homes. As one of the caregivers to my late father, I know first-hand how impactful this capability could be for users and look forward to bringing this offering to life through Alexa.”
The State Farm Alexa skill is optimized for Amazon’s Echo Show, allowing the senior to use voice and touch interface. The Alexa skill then connects to the care circle through a State Farm-developed mobile app. The senior gets a personalized experience and virtual support through coordination and communication with their care circle.
Skill’s Features
Some of the features planned for this Alexa skill and care circle mobile app include:
- Quick check-in with the Alexa skill can reassure care circle via the mobile app
- Interactive dashboard on Echo Show with scrolling list of daily activities
- Tools in the mobile app to coordinate key tasks across the care circle
- Smart suggestions from the mobile app to the senior’s Echo Show for events and activities
- Music and photos sent from the mobile app to the senior’s Echo Show
- Ability to view full calendar on both the Echo Show and mobile app with audio commands and visual display
- Social features on both Echo Show and mobile app to help everyone stay connected
This skill looks promising for helping seniors stay independent. For more information, read our article 14 Different Ways Alexa Can Help Seniors Living Alone.