Young Portuguese man created a platform to combat loneliness in the elderly. Cognitively stimulates elderly people through conversation.
In one of the oldest countries in Europe, Portugal, Humberto Bastos thought about changing the way elderly people live their daily lives.
Humberto is a first-year student of the Degree in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science (L:IACD), at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto (FCUP).
Created the Compy, an Artificial Intelligence platform to cognitively stimulate elderly people through conversation – with the aim of delaying or preventing the onset of neurodegenerative diseases.
The focus is to use technology “in a more human way and with real impact”.
To combat the problem of loneliness, the FCUP student created a “companion” – hence the name “Compy”, virtual, to “not create emotional bonds, but rather stimulate, monitor and report in a useful and responsible way”.
“No complicated buttons or confusing interfaces. You just need to do what you’ve always done: communicate”, reads on the official website of .
“With a simple conversation, you receive reminders, suggestions and, above all, feelif accompanied every day.” There are games also, in addition to reminders of medication, for example.
According to the student, the main focus of this platform is accessibility. For this reason, it will also be developed to work directly on television through the operators’ box.
Even those who don’t have a smartphone or digital skills can use Compy just through the voice.
Humberto Bastos is now looking for investors. It wants more developers, doctors and psychologists to combat loneliness and reinforce active aging. “So that no one grows old alone”, reads the statement sent to ZAP.
