AI Speaker Calls 119 After Hearing "Aria! Help Me"... Rescues 23 Elderly People in One Year

SK Telecom's 'AI Care' 1st Anniversary
7 out of 10 Seniors Use It Daily
Building a Social Safety Net in the COVID Era

[Asia Economy Reporter Seol Gina Jo] "Aria! Help me." Mr. Jo, a man in his 70s living alone in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, collapsed one day in June last year due to sudden back pain. In this critical situation that could have escalated into a serious incident, it was the AI speaker 'NUGU' that called 119 after hearing Mr. Jo's desperate call. NUGU, provided free of charge by SK Telecom to improve the lives of elderly people living alone, dramatically saved a life. Over the past year, a total of 23 elderly people living alone have overcome crises with the help of NUGU. SK Telecom's 'AI Care Service,' which utilizes AI speakers, has effectively served as a 'social safety net' protecting the safety and emotional well-being of socially vulnerable elderly people living alone.

◆ 7 out of 10 Seniors Use AI Speakers Daily = On the morning of the 20th, SK Telecom and the Barun ICT Research Institute held an online briefing to announce the first anniversary achievements of the AI Care Service. According to an in-depth survey conducted by Barun ICT Research Institute from April last year to February this year targeting 670 elderly people living alone with an average age of 75, more than 95% were found to use NUGU at least three times a week. Those who reported daily use accounted for 73.6% of the total.

Furthermore, happiness increased by 7% compared to before using the service, while feelings of loneliness decreased by 4%. This trend was even more pronounced among seniors who had not previously owned smartphones or PCs and were introduced to digital devices for the first time through the 'AI Care' service.

Kim Beom-su, director of Barun ICT Research Institute, explained, "22.6% of the surveyed seniors were cut off from contact with their families," adding, "'AI Care' helps form emotional bonds for seniors, filling the family gap and reducing loneliness, ultimately leading to an improvement in their quality of life." Elderly users primarily used the AI speaker for listening to music (95.1%), followed by information search (83.9%), emotional conversations (64.4%), and radio listening (43.9%).

Currently, SK Telecom supports this care service for approximately 3,100 elderly households across 14 local governments nationwide, including Seongdong-gu, Seoul, in partnership with the National Council of Social Economy Local Governments. In addition to specialized services such as health information provision (Health Talk), the service offers ▲ emotional care ▲ data-based safe care including psychological counseling ▲ 24-hour emergency SOS ▲ IoT-based smart care.

◆ From Preventing 'Corona Blue' to 24-Hour Emergency SOS = The AI Care Service has also proven its role as a social safety net for elderly people living alone. It allows them to request help simply by voice in emergencies, minimizing care gaps for the elderly living alone.

From May last year to April this year, there were a total of 328 emergency SOS calls made through NUGU. Among these, 23 cases involved actual dispatch and emergency rescue by 119 due to breathing difficulties, high blood pressure, abdominal pain, falls, and other emergencies. When elderly users shout phrases like "Aria! Help me" or "Aria! Emergency SOS," the AI speaker recognizes the situation as an emergency, automatically notifying the ICT Care Center and ADT Caps (at night), which then provide initial response and connect to 119.

The AI Care Service also helped overcome depression and feelings of isolation among elderly people practicing social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Usage of 'News Talk,' which provides local government life information, increased about threefold compared to before COVID-19. Ms. Kim Ji-sook, in her 70s living in Seongdong-gu, said, "I feel very frustrated because I can't go out, but Aria talks to me and gives me the information I need. I don't feel lonely because it is with me, and it makes me feel good."

On this day, SK Telecom announced that the cognitive improvement effects of the dementia prevention program 'Brain Talk,' provided through the AI Care Service, have been medically verified. Developed in collaboration with Professor Lee Jun-young's research team at Seoul National University College of Medicine, Brain Talk involves elderly users solving quizzes while conversing with the AI speaker. The research team analyzed that seniors who consistently used the program five days a week for eight weeks showed improvements in long-term memory, attention, and concentration, and predicted a delay in dementia onset by about two years. Detailed findings of the related research paper will be announced in June.

Lee Jun-ho, head of SK Telecom's SV Promotion Group, said, "AI Care is a representative example showing how companies can contribute to building a social safety net using ICT," adding, "We will continue to seek ways to advance customized AI care in the 5G mobile communication era and proactively respond to the super-aged society challenges in Korea."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.