A new subscription service, Alexa Together, and home assistant robot, Astro, could position Amazon in the senior care market, says a recent Senior Housing News article. They may compete with Best Buy Health, which provides virtual social and emergency support for home care, says the article.

Alexa Together converts Amazon’s free Care Hub into a monthly subscription and “essentially turns Echo devices into emergency support devices,” said Senior Housing News. With Alexa Together, people who are caring for a loved one—family members and neighbors—can join the same circle where they can share care information.

Alexa Together offers hands-free access to online assistance so that an older adult can call Alexa for help 24/7. It is also compatible with fall detection services like Vayyar and SkyAngelCare. The monthly fee costs $19.99.

Astro provides home monitoring and, says Amazon, soon will be available with an Alexa Together subscription that allows you to remotely care for aging loved ones, managing shopping lists, receiving activity alerts, and more. Astro also offers what Amazon calls “put Alexa in motion,” following people in the home with entertainment or finding them to deliver calls, give reminders such as medication reminders, etc.

“Amazon’s New Robot Assistant, Alexa Service Hold Potential for Senior Care” notes that the robot has facial recognition capabilities and can interact with third-party software to take vital signs such as blood pressure. It also suggests that Astro may point to the future for voice technology.

More Tech Innovations at the LeadingAge Annual Meeting + EXPO

Learn more about emerging tech innovations at the LeadingAge Annual Meeting + EXPO, Oct. 24-27, 2021, in Atlanta. Check out these and other Aging Services Technologies Track sessions:

1-A.

Accelerating Technology Innovation after COVID

Sunday, Oct. 24, 2021

3 p.m. – 4 p.m.

4-C.

Technologies We Need Now More Than Ever

Monday, Oct. 25, 2021

8 a.m. – 9 a.m.

In addition to unparalleled education, the annual meeting will also give you invaluable opportunities to network with your colleagues. Register today!