AI-BASED SERVICES TO HELP THE ELDERLY

[Anchor Lead]

Senior citizens living alone are left in a welfare vacuum as the COVID-19 pandemic made social workers’ home visits difficult. Now artificial intelligence-based services are emerging as a solution to care for the elderly people who live alone.

[Pkg]

[Soundbite] "Aria, play "Yeonjeong."

Ham Ok-hee turned 80 this year. She asks an AI speaker to play a song. She lost her son last year and the COVID-19 pandemic broke out even before she could finish grieving. Unable to go outside freely, the digital personal assistant is the only friend to keep her company these days.

[Soundbite] HAM OK-HEE(CHUNCHEON RESIDENT) : "My son died last year at age 59. His remains are kept in an enshrinement facility but I can’t visit him because of COVID-19. Since I listen to sad songs so much, Aria says she’s sad too."

It also serves as an emergency rescuer. The word to use in an emergency is "Help me."

[Soundbite] "Help me!"

This action prompts a social worker to call and check on her.

[Soundbite] (LIFE MANAGER) : "Hello, ma’am. Are you experiencing physical discomfort?"

The city of Chuncheon, the Gangwon Information and Culture Promotion Agency, and SK Telecom introduced the AI Senior Care Service this year. It enables the smart speaker to help deal with emergencies through the added phone consultation function. If the caller cannot be reached after an emergency call, a 119 emergency rescue team will be dispatched immediately. The smart speaker gains greater information with prolonged use. Patient-specific welfare services such as an hourly depression analysis are likely to be provided in the near future.

[Soundbite] KIM SEONG-JONG(GANGWON INFORMATION & CULTURE PROMOTION AGENCY) : "Simple conversations like I’m depressed or I’m sad are entered into the database and analyzed."

After a select period of service, the Chuncheon city government plans to analyze the effectiveness of the AI senior care service before deciding on whether to expand the program.