The aged care sector is facing a crisis—one not just of funding and workforce shortages, but of loneliness and social isolation among residents. Aged care homes across Australia are struggling to meet the social needs of older people, with research showing that up to 61% of residents report prolonged loneliness and over 40% experience social isolation.
The 2021 Royal Commission into Aged Care exposed widespread neglect, and in the years since, little has changed.
The role of AI in aged care
Dr Barbara Barbosa Neves, a researcher at the University of Sydney, has spent years investigating how technology—particularly artificial intelligence (AI)—is being integrated into aged care, and whether it is truly improving the lives of residents.
“Loneliness is the worst thing in the world,” says one aged care resident interviewed in Dr Barbosa Neves’ research. “I feel unwanted, abandoned, forgotten. I cry myself to sleep.”
These heartbreaking testimonies reflect a growing public health emergency. The U.S. Surgeon General recently highlighted the severe health impacts of loneliness, linking it to higher risks of stroke, depression, and cognitive decline. Studies show that loneliness increases the risk of dementia by 40%, regardless of background or genetic predisposition.
AI as a quick fix – or a greater risk?
In response, governments and aged care providers are looking for solutions, and AI is increasingly being promoted as a quick fix. From robotic companions to chatbots designed for social interaction, AI is being introduced as a way to combat isolation and support an overstretched workforce.
But according to Dr Barbosa Neves, these technologies may be doing more harm than good.
“Our research demonstrates that AI in aged care often reinforces ageist stereotypes,” she explains. “Older people are rarely involved in designing these systems, they’re missing from the datasets used to train AI, and they’re left out of decisions about how these technologies are implemented.”
The problem is not just exclusion—it’s the way AI is designed. Many of these technologies assume that all older people are passive, disengaged, or resistant to technology. When aged care staff implement AI with these assumptions in mind, they risk deepening the very isolation they aim to reduce.