Empowering Unpaid Carers: An Industry- University Collaboration in Testing An AI-Powered Solution in the Thes-AHALL Living Lab

BACKGROUND AND AIMS
Europe’s demographic shift, particularly in Greece, underscores an urgent need for long-term care support1. With Greece leading in the percentage of people providing weekly informal care, solutions like Hestia, an AI-powered platform developed by Tendertec, are crucial. This study aimed to assess Hestia’s potential in enhancing unpaid caregiving and overall wellbeing, leveraging the VITALISE project’s Living
Lab methodologies at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki for real-world testing.
METHODS Hestia uses thermal sensors and machine learning to detect falls, seizures, daily activities, and body temperature trends. With the Living Lab’s access to participants and realistic environment, Hestia was tested and refined based on participant feedback and data from its sensors. In total, four (4) older adults
were monitored over six weeks, with additional data collected via periodic check-ins and interviews.
RESULTS
The test revealed Hestia’s impact on early fall interventions, better caregiving, and improved mental wellbeing. The platform facilitated understanding of fall risk patterns, caregiver decisions, and reduced caregiver stress. The Living Lab’s expert guidance was critical to these findings and provided insights into the reality of unpaid caregiving in Greece, an area less explored in tech-enabled intervention studies.
CONCLUSION
Our VITALISE Living Lab experience was invaluable, offering a collaborative environment for successful testing and evaluation of Hestia. The outcomes underscore the significance of Living Labs as Research Infrastructures in understanding caregiving realities and potential tech-enabled interventions. We plan to leverage Living Lab methodologies in future research to refine Hestia and continue innovating in the caregiving sector.