{"693286":{"#nid":"693286","#data":{"type":"news","title":"$1.5 Million Grant Expands AI-Powered Tool to Help Older Adults Age in Place","body":[{"value":"\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EResearchers at Georgia Tech\u0027s Center for Advanced Communications Policy will use the funding to help older adults access assistive technologies that support independent living.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPrincipal research scientist Nathan Moon and a team of colleagues at the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cacp.gatech.edu\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ECenter for Advanced Communications Policy\u003C\/a\u003E (CACP) in Georgia Tech\u2019s Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts were awarded a three-year, $1.5 million grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research. The project is in collaboration with the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cidi.gatech.edu\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ECenter for Inclusive Design and Innovation\u003C\/a\u003E (CIDI) in the College of Design.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe funding will support the ACCESS for Aging Well with Assistive Technology (AT) 2.0 project, which builds on the researchers\u2019 previous work to help older adults live independently.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cAs Americans continue to age and we\u0027re growing older as a society, we want to ensure that people can continue to live independently and participate in the communities of their choice,\u201d Moon said. \u201cThe tools that we have developed here are intended to do that.\u201d\u003Cbr\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EAssistive Technology Supports Independence\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAccording to AARP, 75% of adults over 50 want to age in their homes. However, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.retirementliving.com\/aging-in-place\/aging-in-place-statistics\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ERetirement Living\u003C\/a\u003E reports only 10% of homes are appropriately equipped to do so. Assistive technologies can help older adults live independently longer, but finding the right solutions and learning how to access them can be difficult.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EACCESS for Aging Well with AT 2.0 addresses those challenges by using machine learning, predictive analytics, and community partnerships to connect people with the tools and resources they need.\u003Cbr\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EExpanding Access and Community\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe researchers will use the funding to integrate the existing \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/aging-well.cidi.gatech.edu\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EACCESS for Aging Well website\u003C\/a\u003E and \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.assistive-tech.net\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003Eassistive technology catalog\u003C\/a\u003E into a single platform that provides assessments, recommendations, and solutions for older adults via machine learning, predictive analytics, expert insight, and state assistive technology program data.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIt will foster an active community through online discussion forums, social media, product reviews, and informational articles. The team will also analyze community discussions with AI-based tools to refine recommendations and identify new or innovative ways people may be using assistive technology.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFinally, the funding will help the researchers connect with organizations such as senior centers, rehabilitation centers, and state aging agencies to expand access to assistive technologies and meet older Americans where they are.\u003Cbr\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EEvery Dollar Spent on Assistive Technology Saves $9\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe project also supports a significant return on investment.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cFor every $1 spent on assistive technology, people save $9,\u201d Moon said. \u201cAssisted living is terribly expensive. We will never replace assisted living or nursing homes, but we do want to give people the choice to age successfully in their communities of choice.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EUsing technology to improve lives is a central mission of the Ivan Allen College and Georgia Tech, and researchers at CACP and CIDI collaborate across disciplines to do just that.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe\u0027re using AI and harnessing the cutting edge of technology to make better recommendations based on what we know, but it\u2019s not just technology for technology\u2019s sake. We put the people first and technology follows. It\u0027s there to be a support.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EResearchers at Georgia Tech\u0027s Center for Advanced Communications Policy will use the funding to help older adults access assistive technologies that support independent living.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Researchers at Georgia Tech\u0027s Center for Advanced Communications Policy will use the funding to help older adults access assistive technologies that support independent living."}],"uid":"35766","created_gmt":"2026-10-19 14:37:08","changed_gmt":"2026-10-19 14:41:40","author":"dminardi3","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2026-10-19T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2026-10-19T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"681459":{"id":"681459","type":"image","title":"MERCURY--6-.jpg","body":null,"created":"1792420777","gmt_created":"2026-10-19 14:39:37","changed":"1792420777","gmt_changed":"2026-10-19 14:39:37","alt":"Researchers working in Georgia Tech\u0027s Center for Advanced Communications Policy","file":{"fid":"265867","name":"MERCURY--6-.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/10\/19\/MERCURY--6-.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/10\/19\/MERCURY--6-.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1344361,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2026\/10\/19\/MERCURY--6-.jpg?itok=kJTfwpt3"}}},"media_ids":["681459"],"groups":[{"id":"1281","name":"Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts"},{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"},{"id":"1289","name":"School of Public Policy"}],"categories":[{"id":"151","name":"Policy, Social Sciences, and Liberal Arts"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39501","name":"People and Technology"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:dminardi3@gatech.edu\u0022\u003EDi Minardi\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EIvan Allen College of Liberal Arts\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["diminardi@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}