A CHARITY and a non-profit company have teamed up to use artificial intelligence to provide companionship for older people living on their own.
Age UK South Gloucestershire and Comfort Companions CIC are offering “friendly digital companions”, accessible via a smartphone app, to people on the charity’s befriending waiting list.
People in Frenchay and Soundwell are among the first ten participants who will be given one of the AI companions to talk to over the next month.
Age UK South Gloucestershire currently has around 200 people waiting for support from its volunteer befriending service, and in 2024 seven people on the list died before they could be offered help.
Age UK volunteer Grant Mackenzie, who co-founded Comfort Companions CIC with his dad Tom, said: “When I heard that seven people had died on the waiting list without anyone ever getting to them, I couldn’t get it out of my head.
“No one in our community should die without having someone to speak to. A simulated person is not the same as a real one, but it is far better than silence.
“Comfort Companions are friendly digital companions that hold natural, human-like conversations and are designed specifically for older British people.
“Each person is matched with one or more of five companions using a short personality quiz, so the experience feels warm and familiar, rather than clinical.”
Grant said older people and Age UK South Gloucestershire staff had helped design the service, with volunteers helping each person who uses it to set up the companion and learn how to use it.
People who use the service tap on the companion’s face to start and stop talking to it.
This means that, unlike Amazon’s Alexa and Apple’s Siri, the app is not constantly listening via the phone’s microphone.
Age UK South Gloucestershire chief executive Mark Flower said the scheme solves a “real problem”.
He said: “Demand for befriending far outstrips supply, and too many older people die waiting for support.
“We have a befriending service, which at the moment has 200 people waiting on it, waiting for somebody to be their friend.
“This project can be a lifeline for those who would otherwise go unheard.”
The scheme is currently being funded from the charity’s reserves but to support it past the pilot phase, Age UK and Comfort Companions are looking for supporters to come forward to donate £12 per month towards the running costs per person.
They hope to also raise funding from the community towards the cost of loan devices, internet access and support for volunteers.
To donate or find details visit www.comfortcompanions.co.uk.