AARP’s AgeTech Investor Community helps tech entrepreneurs goal the getting old inhabitants

AARP (previously the American Affiliation of Retired Individuals) has began its AgeTech Investor Community, aimed toward serving to startups get off the bottom within the AgeTech market — which targets older populations.

AARP’s AgeTech Investor Community is a collaboration with AgeTech Capital, increasing onAARP’s mission to assist and elevate AgeTech startups by widening the chance for funding. Highlighted on the upcoming CES 2025, AgeTech was born from the truth that most know-how merchandise have been focused at younger adults. However as boomers and others grow old, the necessity to tackle tech merchandise throughout the spectrum of demographics makes extra advertising sense and it’s additionally pressing.

“The objective is to assist these nice startups scale their services, and in flip, it’ll assist the create social influence to assist the tens of millions of oldsters on this nation who want entry to those new providers,” mentioned Andy Miller, senior vice chairman of innovation and product growth at AARP Innovation Labs, in an interview with GamesBeat.mentioned. “On this new collaborative, we began focusing on buyers. So we have now over 95 enterprise capitalists which have joined the collaborative.”

I noticed the necessity for this tech myself as I attempted to search out tech merchandise to assist me deal with my getting old mom. I used to be a sole caregiver in that case — as occurs with so many households in the present day — whereas nonetheless needing to be current for different household as nicely. However I discovered my mom didn’t take to trendy know-how — she couldn’t work out tips on how to use an iPhone — and plenty of merchandise simply didn’t serve her wants.

There are a number of issues that tech nonetheless can’t do. My mom handed away from dementia in 2024, however I nonetheless see the broader want. Previously decade, I’ve seen a number of startups take a stab at this and I’ve written about them alongside the best way. However it nonetheless seems like an underserved market.

Most of the applied sciences aimed toward seniors use the TV or the phone as a communications instrument. Issues like telehealth can work utilizing these instruments, however establishing the providers in an aged particular person’s residence is commonly a problem. Some assisted residing amenities do a greater job with this, however that’s not at all times the case. Some applied sciences at all times goal caregivers, who are sometimes “sandwiched” between older dad and mom and their kids when it comes to caregiving duties.

AgeTech Investor Community

The brand new AARP community and its group of business consultants and innovators are dedicated to driving change within the AgeTech sector by connecting groundbreaking startups with visionary buyers trying to assist and form the rising AgeTech area, Miller mentioned.

For buyers, the members of AgeTech Investor Community get unique entry to a curated number of high-potential AgeTech startups, complete due diligence assist, a vibrant neighborhood of like-minded buyers, and alternatives to drive significant influence.

And for entrepreneurs, startups get entry to an unlimited community of buyers, mentorship alternatives, and beneficial assets to scale their companies by incremental funding alternatives and assist.

Andy Miller, senior vice chairman of improvements and product growth, mentioned in an interview that AARP began working with startups seven years in the past. About 5 years in the past, it began making investments in these startups after they went by its program, which is a personalized accelerator. About three years in the past, in 2021, it began the AgeTech Collaborative.

Miller seen that Collection A buyers had been writing larger checks. Whereas many startups can elevate $2 million or $3 million, they’re usually not prepared for $10 million or $12 million and the financial circumstances haven’t been nice for that type of fundraising. However the startups want some type of seed spherical extension from smaller funds, Miller mentioned.

“Over the previous few years, we’re beginning to see that change. And we’re seeing some new funds with the ability to elevate cash now and we checked out how we will help the startups in this type of tweener stage,” he mentioned. “And the idea of AgeTech is admittedly beginning to take maintain when it comes to its financial influence. Folks the age of fifty are spending cash and utilizing know-how. It’s within the highlight.”

AARP’s AgeTech Collaborative‘s function is to enhance individuals’s lives as they age. The initiative brings collectively a one-of-a-kind ecosystem of main startups, forward-thinking buyers, enlightened enterprises, and artistic testbeds – all working to convey groundbreaking AgeTech improvements to market.

“Now it has change into the most important ecosystem on this planet for AgeTech-oriented corporations at nearly 600 corporations,” Miller mentioned. “It contains a number of the largest organizations, just like the Fortune 10, all the best way all the way down to assisted residing amenities. And it has the about 200 startups which have joined the collaborative and gone by our program.”

AARP has invested in about 57% of these over the past 3.5 years, or greater than 100 investments now.

AARP’s basis

AARP is the most important non-profit, non-partisan advocacy affiliation within the U.S. Advocating for individuals over age 50 within the U.S., AARP has over 38 million members within the U.S.

AARP sees AgeTech as something that may assist individuals age nicely, and the corporate acknowledges an enormous want for individuals to make use of know-how for care. Their mission is to empower individuals to decide on how they dwell as they age by discovering innovation, tech, and product options and providers that assist us all age nicely primarily based on our personal preferences.

AARP’s AgeTech Collaborative began in 2021 and is now the most important AgeTech ecosystem on this planet, approaching 600 corporations together with a number of the largest corporations globally and over 90 enterprise capitalists. AARP has additionally had an enormous presence at CES annually for its AgeTech options and collaborations.

Amongst AARP’s priorities for AgeTech options are the next:

• Sensible residence tech (77% of individuals wish to age of their residence an don’t wish to go to assisted residing, Miller mentioned). These sensible houses want a number of sensors, like detecting whether or not somebody has fallen in a house or is wandering off the property. This will also be focused at sensible residence assisted residing.
• Mobility + staying energetic. Offering exoskeletons to offer individuals extra power in shifting round has made strides in recent times, however the tech nonetheless is frequent to see getting used.
• Mind well being. The principle worry individuals have as they age isn’t that they lose their automobile keys and their independence. With such prevalence of dementia, now the worry is they are going to lose their minds, Miller mentioned.
• Social engagement + leisure. Social isolation is a number one explanation for loneliness amongst getting old individuals, and there’s methods tech can be utilized to handle this, similar to utilizing “music as drugs,” Miller mentioned. Digital actuality journey and different purposes maintain promise on this space, he mentioned.

The numbers across the getting old inhabitants

Miller mentioned that 12,000 individuals are turning age 65 each day within the U.S. And folks ages 50+ contribute $8.3 trillion in financial influence within the U.S.

“While you dwell in India and China, Japan, the numbers much more staggering. After which when you consider the caregiving a part of that, there’s simply not sufficient of us to take care of the individuals which might be getting old,” Miller mentioned. “So know-how is one thing we’re trying to to assist fill that void. The AgeTech Investor Community goes to offer angel buyers entry to a really distinctive deal circulation pipeline.”

Folks 50 and older within the U.S. spent $77 billion on know-how in 2022 — that quantity is projected to develop to roughly $120 billion in 2030, in keeping with the AARP.

By 2030, the primary millennials will flip age 50, elevating the age 50+ contribution to $12 trillion in financial influence within the U.S. (this may be third largest GDP in world) and $35 trillion globally. By 2050, the age 50+ contribution is projected to be nearly $100 trillion in financial influence globally.

“That is why we’ve had so many organizations be a part of us within the collaborative,” Miller mentioned. “If corporations aren’t already promoting to the 50-plus inhabitants, they should do it as a result of that’s the place the cash is gone. The large fable is that outdated individuals don’t use tech. The one largest cohort with regards to shopper spend on know-how is the 50 yr olds to 60 yr olds, which makes them the most important group of early adopters of tech.”

How this system works

One the dear issues that this community will create is curated deal circulation pipeline.

“The fascinating factor concerning the pipeline is that to work with AARP as a startup, it’s a must to go to certainly one of our occasions and make it to the stage. You don’t should win, however it’s a must to make it that far. After which we are able to decide and select those that we wish to invite into our accelerator program,” Miller mentioned.

The accelerator program lasts eight weeks and that’s when AARP makes its resolution about investing or not.

“We’re spending extra time with a startup than most likely any investor would ever spend earlier than making a choice,” Miller mentioned. “By the point that you just make run the gauntlet, if you’ll, are you able to make it to the purpose the place we’d put you in entrance of an angel. We will’t ever fully de-risk any funding, however buyers can have a extremely good feeling about how extremely curated these corporations are after they see them.”

In some instances, the startups could have pilot packages and business transactions that AARP helps facilitate.

“We’re constructing a double sided market, and now we’re actively engaged with the angel neighborhood,” Miller mentioned.

A partnership instance

Belief & Will is the main on-line property planning firm within the U.S. It’s on a mission to make sure that each American leaves a long-lasting legacy. The agency is eliminating the painful technique of going by probate courtroom by specializing in digital property planning that’s complete but doesn’t require an legal professional.

Belief & Will has been concerned with AARP by a partnership with the AgeTech Collaborative. In 2021, Belief & Will joined forces with AARP’s AgeTech Collaborative community in to assist innovate for the 50+ neighborhood, collaborating with startups, buyers, and business leaders.

As AARP’s unique accomplice, Belief & WIll provides AARP members a 20% low cost on property planning providers, making it simpler for them to create wills and trusts. AARP additionally has a strategic funding in Belief & Will.

The AgeTech startups supported by AARP embody VoiceIt, Lance, Kinoo, Joylux, Springrose, 1 True Well being, 6Degrees, Dentity, DeepLook Medica, De Oro Units, Abby by Gogotech, Addition, Advosense, Chas, Elektra Well being, Ageless Innovation, Echas, Effectivte, Gameboard, Givers, GoodTrust, Grapefruit Well being and SingFit.

At CES, AARP could have about 13,000 sq. toes of exhibit area on the Venetian, as a part of the digital well being, sensible residence and way of life know-how areas. AARP is that includes 30 corporations within the sales space that span a wide range of classes. AARP is doing the AgeTech Summit with the CTA, with Maria Shriver as a speaker. And on January 10, AARP could have a live-pitch occasion on the present for startups, with a money prize.