What if a sleek ear cuff helped us live longer AND better?
Just a hundred years ago we barely lived to age fifty.
For decades, the health-tech sector has been working to extend our living years. And they have! Just a hundred years ago we barely lived to age fifty.
But has this extended lifespan been a fully positive experience? Take for example anyone who has ever experienced a loved one going through cognitive decline (IE Dementia) in the later part of their life. It is a deeply painful experience for all involved.
So how can we ensure that these longer years are quality years? This is the future Joanna Peña-Bickley is working to build now.
Joanna is one of the original innovators behind Amazon’s Alexa, and is now the co-founder of Vibes AI, a company operating at the intersection of wearable technology, artificial intelligence and cognitive wellness.
Her team has created a sleek ear-cuff prototype designed to listen not just to what you say, but to how you say it. In doing so, it analyzes your voice for over 500 biomarkers that indicate your brain’s health that inform steps you can take to improve it.
In a world where we track steps, sleep and even glucose in real-time, Joanna asks a critical question: why aren't we monitoring our brains with the same urgency?
For Joanna, this mission isn’t purely innovation -- it's deeply personal. It's inspired by watching her father struggle with cognitive decline, and even driven by her own experiences with brain fog. She reminds us that some cognitive diseases are preventable and hopes to empower us to proactively manage and improve our brain health.
By doing all of this, Joanna says she’s not just trying to extend our lifespan and our health span, but also something she calls our ‘Joy Span,’ the fulfilling years of our lives.
I like the sound of that.
This conversation blew me away. Dive in here: Does Your Voice Hold the Secret to Aging Well? ✦
