Stretching their Reach: Robotic Support for Older Adults with Memory Challenges
Official title: Stretching their Reach: Robotic Support for Older Individuals with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Early Alzheimer's Dementia
Funded at Hello Robot INC · NIH-11408722 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A small robotic assistant helps older adults with mild cognitive impairment or early Alzheimer's stay independent at home while easing daily tasks for caregivers.
Quick facts
| Grant type | Sbir 2 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Hello Robot INC NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Martinez, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2021 |
| Project end | May 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $1,011,827 |
| NIH project number | 2R44AG072982-04A1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11408722 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Older adults (65+) with mild cognitive impairment or early Alzheimer’s disease/dementia and their caregivers, including those living alone.
✕Less likely to help
Seniors without cognitive impairment or those unable to use or benefit from assistive robotics.
What this research studies
This grant aims to advance a robot called Stretch to support older adults with cognitive challenges, especially those living alone, by providing reminders, cueing, social interaction prompts, and safety alerts. The project emphasizes real-world testing with older adults and their care partners, building on prior design work and naturalistic evaluations. It focuses on cognitive support, social engagement, and safety management to reduce caregiver burden and healthcare costs. Participants would be older adults with MCI or early ADRD who live in community settings and may interact with caregivers who are not always co-located.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the robot could help seniors live independently longer and lighten the load on family and professional caregivers.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work shows promise for assistive robots in supporting daily activities and caregiver relief, with ongoing improvements in usability.
Where this research is happening
-
Hello Robot INC
Martinez, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Edsinger, Aaron — Hello Robot INC
- Study coordinator: Edsinger, Aaron
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Insomnia, Depression, and Sleep Medications in Mild Cognitive Impairment Leading to Dementia
This project looks at how sleep problems and depression, along with the medicines used to treat them, may affect the progression from mild cognitive issues to dementia in older adults.
-
Cochlear implants and hearing aids in older adults with hearing loss to understand links to memory and thinking
This study follows adults 65+ with age-related hearing loss to see how real-world use of cochlear implants or hearing aids relates to thinking skills and progression toward dementia.
-
Age-related Dementia and Brain Pathology in the Oldest-Old: A Long-Term Lifecourse Study
A large, long-running study is following people aged 90 and up to understand how Alzheimer’s disease and related brain changes develop over many years.
-
Screening tool to flag mild cognitive impairment and early dementia in home healthcare
A new AI-based screening tool analyzes everyday speech during home healthcare visits to help identify older adults who may have mild cognitive impairment or early dementia.
-
Cochlear Implants for Hearing Loss and Memory in Older Adults
This project looks at how cochlear implants and hearing aids help older adults with age-related hearing loss and memory concerns in their daily lives.
-
Smartphone reminders to help future memory in mild cognitive impairment and early dementia
This project compares a smartphone reminder app to a paper-based memory aid for people with mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia to help remember future tasks like taking medications.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.