6 ways tech on display at CES promises to help with ageing

LAS VEGAS – The world’s largest tech expo has always been about flashy new devices promising to make life better, but CES 2025 has seen more companies attempt to tackle a global challenge: ageing.

“Age tech” was on full display during the four-day consumer electronics and tech show, from Jan 7 to 10, as companies looked to address challenges related to mobility, vision and hearing loss and diet constraints that come with getting older.

This is as spending on tech among those aged 50 and above is likely to hit US$120 billion (S$164.6 billion) by 2030 in the US market alone, said the AARP, an interest group devoted to retirees in the US.

It put forth research on Jan 8 that showed that four in five Americans who are 50 or older report owning at least one device that it categorises as age tech, which includes things like digital blood pressure monitors.

CES show director John T. Kelley told The Straits Times that the rising demand for such devices comes as the generation now entering retirement grew up around smart devices and the internet.

“So they understand the basics of technology and how to use it, and will seek out products and services that really speak to their needs,” he said.

ST walked the show floor to highlight six innovative products aiming to help people age more gracefully.

Electric wheelchair with co-pilot

Using technology pioneered in autonomous cars, Singapore start-up Strutt has created an electric wheelchair that knows how to get users to their destination with just a push of its joystick in the general direction.

Through a combination of light detection and ranging (Lidar) and other sensors, and the company’s own algorithms, the ev1 wheelchair automatically detects obstacles – including people or pets entering its path – and prevents collisions, finding a new route if necessary.

Lidar instruments use lasers to generate a digital 3D map of the world around them.

Users who want more control can opt for another mode where collision avoidance is still active, but the wheelchair does not plot a course for them. There is also a fully manual mode without any drive assistance.

Strutt founder Tony Hong, who spent six years leading optoelectronics and Lidar research at drone-maker DJI, said the ev1’s other advantage lies in its engineering.

For instance, all four of its wheels are powered, while most other electric wheelchairs have only rear motors. This means the ev1 can more safely tackle ramps, as well as uneven or wet surfaces.

At CES, the company also demonstrated the use of a mixed-reality headset for a user to control the wheelchair by sight, or by putting down virtual waypoints, as possible future capabilities.

Strutt said it hopes to bring its wheelchair to market by early 2026 at a price comparable with competing products.

Spectacles that restore vision

While smart spectacles were everywhere at CES 2025, with many promising to summon an artificial intelligence (AI) assistant at the tap of a finger, one model stood out for being able to restore eyesight to someone with macular degeneration.

The eye disease causes a dark spot to emerge in the centre of one’s view owing to the deterioration of the retina, often because of ageing. The condition affects some 200 million people worldwide.

The SolidddVision smart spectacles solve this problem by using a grid of lenses to capture images, which the brain automatically turns into a single sharp image.

Even if some area of the wearer’s visual field is blocked or unfocused, the redundant visual information received in other areas of the retina is combined, resulting in the wearer seeing a complete image without the dark spot.

Other companies at CES showcased spectacles that help those who are hard of hearing to join a conversation by translating speech to text in real time.

Among these were the Xanderglasses and Captify smart spectacles, which both work by using tiny microphones to pick up speech, AI to turn it into text, and displays built into the spectacles themselves to project the words in front of the wearer’s eyes.

Both pairs of spectacles can perform live translations in as many as 40 languages, a function marketed as also being useful to fans of foreign films.

Monitoring wellness without wearables

While many seniors want to age in place in their own homes, family members may be worried about falls and other medical emergencies, and that timely medical assistance is not readily available if the senior is living alone.

At the same time, wearable devices such as panic buttons are cumbersome as they require charging and constant wear, while using cameras can be too intrusive.

To solve both problems, Singaporean technology company iWOW introduced two new products at CES that complement its existing Buddy of Parents (BOP) emergency alert button, which has been deployed to more than 10,000 Housing Board rental flats so far.

The first device, BOP Monitor, uses infrared rays to detect a person’s heat signature and analyses if a person has fallen and whether he needs help. This means that, unlike with CCTV, privacy is preserved even as a home environment is continuously monitored.

While competing devices alert family members to a fall through an app, the BOP monitor can ping an offsite response centre, emergency services and caregivers if a person remains on the ground for some time.

The second device, BOP Presence, looks like a multiplug and monitors motion within a home using Wi-Fi radio waves.

Over time, the device learns a person’s activity patterns and can alert caregivers if there is any significant change in them.

Making food tasty with less salt

Two Japanese companies showed off tech that helps people reduce their salt intake without turning food bland.

Beverage company Kirin has an Electric Salt Spoon that amplifies flavours such as saltiness and umami in foods, while food company Ajinomoto’s SaltAmp achieves the same effect using a neck-worn device attached to the chin.

Both devices work by sending mild electrical currents into the mouth to concentrate sodium ions in the food towards the tongue, thereby creating the illusion of increased saltiness.

While Ajinomoto’s device appears more cumbersome, the company noted that a cutlery-based approach means that the electric current ceases each time the spoon leaves the mouth, while its wearable provides continuous taste enhancement throughout the meal.

Both companies said they developed their devices to help people stick with low-sodium diets, particularly as they age.

This is important as salt has a greater effect on blood pressure as one ages, which increases the risks of heart disease and stroke.

Excessive salt consumption can also lead to fluid retention, which worsens conditions like heart failure and oedema that are more common in older people.

Robo-puppy to fight dementia

Science has shown that dementia patients who have access to an animal companion can better maintain their cognitive function and ward off feelings of isolation. But taking care of a pet can become increasingly difficult for such patients.

Enter Jennie, a Labrador puppy built by US company Tombot that is furry on the outside but packed with tech on the inside.

Built with the help of Jim Henson’s Creature Shop – known for The Muppets and other big-screen animatronics – the robot dog responds to touch and voice commands and is surprisingly lifelike. For instance, it will tilt its head and nuzzle if you scratch behind its ear.

Tombot co-founder Tom Stevens said he was driven to create Jennie after his mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and he eventually had to take away her real dog for safety reasons.

While there are similar animal companions on the market, most of the cheaper options have limited interactions that fully play out within a minute, said Mr Stevens.

In contrast, Tombot offers new actions and commands over time through software updates.

The goal is to create something close to Paro, a US$6,000 baby seal robot that is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for use as a therapeutic device, at a quarter of the cost, Mr Stevens added.

And unlike Paro, which charges by sucking on an electric pacifier, Jennie has inductive charging, and only needs to sit on its blue blanket to power back up.

Exoskeletons help with staying fit

Exosuits that improve the strength and endurance of soldiers in the field have been promised for some years, but the bright spot for such augmentations might be for seniors.

At CES, multiple companies showcased their take on wearable robotics for rehabilitation and for walking assistance, which can help the elderly with mobility issues retain their ability to do light exercise.

South Korean company Hurotics displayed the H-Medi, a backpack-based robot designed to help hospital patients fix their walking gait. It analyses the wearer’s gait and recommends changes that physiotherapists can then use to improve the patient’s walking efficiency.

Meanwhile, WIRobotics showed off WIM, an ultralight 1.6kg wearable that can reduce a wearer’s walking energy usage by 25 per cent.

The company, created by four engineers from Samsung Electronics’ Robotics Division, said the device can also increase walking resistance to help build muscle.

For those who love the great outdoors, the Hypershell Carbon X offers many of the same functions, but with IP54-rated dust and splash resistance.

Chinese company Hypershell said its exoskeleton suit has 10 different assistance modes, and can be used for cycling.