AI and ageing: Machine learning for human health and longevity

The report discusses how we can establish a baseline for monitoring individuals’ biological age to advance research, how AI can promote longevity by helping us to eat healthier, whether AI can help us tackle the chronic disease of ageing, and more.

The number of people in the world aged 65 or over will more than double to reach 1.5 billion by 2050, according to the United Nations. The rapidly changing demographic is set to pose acute economic and social challenges and threatens to place a huge burden on health systems. Helping people to live independently and maintain their health and wellbeing across a longer lifespan is widely regarded as a key part of the solution to these challenges.

The UK, US and Japan are among countries that have adopted policies aiming to support healthy ageing through investment in technological innovation. With a plethora of novel devices aimed at improving health and longevity already on the market and hundreds more in development, the segment is poised for rapid growth.

A host of gadgets using AI to help older people who are “ageing in place” to maintain their health and wellbeing has come on rapidly. Spanning emergency calls, vital signs monitoring, reminder services, fall detection and health assessment, they include sensors, cameras, smartwatches and tablets. Many can be connected to a smart home control system or healthcare and emergency services.