In late 2024, the AgeTech Collaborative™ from AARP embarked on an exciting new collaboration with Asbury Methodist Village: the Asbury Smart Living Showcase. Eight AgeTech Collaborative startup participants outfitted one of Asbury’s apartments with their products, turning it into a high-tech hub of AgeTech solutions. The result is an immersive experience where Asbury residents have opportunities to try out all the featured devices and services for themselves. After visiting the Showcase, residents provide detailed feedback on their experiences with all the new tech they encountered — the good and bad.
Located in Gaithersburg, Maryland, Asbury Methodist Village offers residents a variety of senior housing options, including independent living, assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing settings across six vibrant apartment neighborhoods on its 134-acre campus. It also features cultural events, clubs and a host of award-winning programs.
Asbury — which works with the AgeTech Collaborative through its subsidiary ThriveWell Tech, an AgeTech Collaborative testbed — also has a long history of proactively seeking out the latest technology to simplify and improve the lives of its residents, making it an ideal location for the Showcase. “With regard to technology, senior living as a whole has been a slow adopter; we’re 20 years behind other industries such as banking and insurance,” says Doug Leidig, president and CEO of Asbury Communities, Inc. “But for the last 10 to 15 years, Asbury has adopted a strategic approach in adopting technology, because we see how much it can enhance our residents’ lives.”
Besides wanting to improve the lives of its current residents, Asbury recognizes the importance of staying ahead of the technology curve for its future residents. “A lot of older adults want technology,” says Leidig. “Organizations such as Asbury must continue to invest in and stay engaged with technology, because residents will be looking for that.”
The entire AgeTech Collaborative team is equally excited about the chance to help arrange a pilot opportunity where its startup participants can further test their solutions in a real-world setting. “This is a great opportunity for the AgeTech Collaborative,” says Amelia Hay, vice president of startup programming and investments at the AgeTech Collaborative. “In our vision to make aging easier, our goal is to lift all boats, and this collaboration helps bolster startups in the AgeTech ecosystem and helps their solutions to rise to the top. Asbury are leaders leveraging technology throughout their senior living communities to help their residents live happier, more fulfilling lives; so this collaboration was a natural fit.”
Moreover, the Showcase also advances the mission and work of the Collaborative itself. “We try to find solutions that make aging easier for everyone,” says Hay. “And I mean everyone, because aging affects the families and friends surrounding the aging person. The collaboration with Asbury will help us identify gaps in the industry. What needs are still not being addressed? What solutions do we need to look for and source?”
The data collected from the feedback that Asbury residents provide is valuable on a number of fronts. First, it helps Asbury understand how it can better serve its residents. “We have embraced technology, but what we have lacked is data,” says Leidig. “Now, the data we collect can help us be proactive when it comes to things such as disease management and fall prevention.”
Second, the startups involved gain invaluable, real-world feedback on what’s awesome about their solutions and what still needs improvement. “The startups receive feedback from residents, which gives them insights into how people are actually using their products,” says Hay. “These solutions take a long time to evolve and validate, because they address complex problems. That feedback is enormously helpful in revealing ways that startups can tweak their products to make them better and more user friendly. Plus, it’s a wonderful way for the startups to reach their audience directly.”
From the beginning, the vision was to feature a curated, rotating selection of startups and their solutions in the Showcase. To select the inaugural startups, the Asbury and AgeTech Collaborative teams focused on a variety of companies that are already in market and that addressed a breadth of needs, including fall prediction and detection, kitchen safety and social connection.
The first startups to be featured in the Showcase were:
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ONSCREEN turns TVs into an interactive platform, making large-format video calls easily accessible and promoting visual and emotional connections with family and friends.
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Famileo helps families stay close and fosters meaningful interactions across generations through personalized, printed newsletters sent directly to seniors’ mailboxes each month.
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Xander’s XanderGlasses project real-time captions of what other people are saying onto the glasses’ lenses, helping those with hearing challenges stay connected in conversations.
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iGuard Home Solutions uses motion detectors to monitor stoves to prevent fires, automatically shutting the stove off when no motion is detected.
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Candoo Tech provides comprehensive tech support and training designed for older adults, including 1:1 training and support, group lessons and a library of on-demand content.
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Livindi provides monitoring for key health measures, fall detection and communication with caregivers, supporting connection and safety.
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ZIBRIO is a smart scale that measures your balance and provides a real-time fall risk score, helping people take proactive steps to prevent falls.
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Flowly is a virtual reality pain management tool designed to alleviate chronic pain.
The Asbury Smart Living Showcase is an ongoing project and provides immediate benefits for those living at Asbury. “Our residents get very excited about the tech in the Showcase,” says Leidig. “It gives them purpose because they’re involved in new technology, and — for example — they can stay engaged with their families and grandkids. As a testbed participant with the AgeTech Collaborative, we’re thrilled to be part of the national conversation in how and what technology is brought to market.”
The collaboration also serves as a model for future partnerships among Collaborative participants, breaking down silos, providing valuable direct feedback to drive innovation, and expanding the reach of AgeTech overall. “We’re showing that this kind of collaboration is both possible and truly beneficial,” says Hay. “It also helps spread the word about AgeTech solutions and, hopefully, can make people feel better about aging.”
You can learn more about the Smart Living Showcase here, and about Asbury Methodist Village at their website. AgeTech Collaborative participants can connect with ThriveWell Tech via the Collaborative directory.
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