The inaugural Digital Seniors Tech Expo was held in Auckland on Sunday 10th November 2024. The event saw over a 1500 people come and experience some amazing cutting-edge technology and meet with a huge range of organisations working with a passion to help support health aging and lifelong learning.
60 organisations came together as sponsors, exhibitors and speakers to encourage new modern stereotypes of people ageing well, empowered with technology. Exhibiters included energy providers, banks, health focused organisations and technology providers.
Speakers presented on a diverse range of topics including financial management, stroke rehabilitation, using AI to assist people with dementia and manage pain.
Auckland Council was a proud sponsor for this event, represented on the day by six teams – Auckland Emergency Management, Healthy Waters and Flood Resilience, Auckland Libraries, WasteWise, Auckland Transport and Pools and Leisure. support through Tāmaki Makaurau tauawhi kaumātua – Age-friendly Auckland Action Plan.
Nancy Baines from Healthy Waters and Flood Resilience Team said “It was a great opportunity to have meaningful conversations with seniors and hear about their experience interacting with Auckland Council technology. Their feedback is helpful for us, and it was really enjoyable to meet and talk to our older Aucklanders about their experiences using our digital services and be able to learn from them.”
Some of the technological highlights of the event included the Omeo wheelchair which is controlled solely by your body movement. RecoveriX – new technology from Japan that uses neurotechnology to help people recover from strokes and Multiple Sclerosis, plus talks including using speech AI to diagnose conditions such as dementia, on the future of exoskeletons to help maintain physical movement, and how to secure your digital legacy.
The Auckland Libraries Heritage and Māori Outcomes Teams also presented on their new Augmented Reality experience which enables people to literally step into the history of the signing of the Te Tiriti o Waitangi (a founding constitutional document of Aotearoa New Zealand signed in 1840) and ran demonstrations all day!
The Digital Seniors Tech Expo was a great success, and it is hoped will become an annual event in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland.