Insider Brief
- Hello Robot received a nearly $3 million NIH grant to develop and test its Stretch mobile manipulator as an assistive robot for older adults with mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer’s dementia.
- The three-year University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign project will use Stretch 4 to study cognitive assistance, social engagement and safety management through research involving 60 older adults, care partners and professional care staff.
- Researchers will evaluate Stretch in homes and care settings for effectiveness, usability, reliability, trust, acceptance and safety, building on earlier NIH-funded work by Hello Robot and the university.
Hello Robot received a nearly $3 million National Institutes of Health federal grant to develop and test its Stretch mobile manipulator as an assistive robot for older adults with mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer’s dementia.
According to the company, the three-year project with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, through the NIH’s National Institute on Aging, began Sept. 22 and is expected to continue through May 2029. The funding will help prepare Stretch for use in homes and care settings.
The Project
Stretch is a mobile manipulator that combines a compact mobile base, lightweight telescoping arm, artificial intelligence and user interfaces for operation in everyday environments. The project, titled “Stretching their Reach: Robotic Support for Older Individuals with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Early Alzheimer’s Dementia,” will use Hello Robot’s newest model Stretch 4,, introduced in May.
Researchers will apply advances in AI-powered language, planning, perception and voice interaction across three areas:
- Cognitive assistance, including reminders, activity guidance and help locating everyday objects
- Social engagement, including initiating interactions and helping people stay connected
- Safety management, including support for mobility, hydration and other daily routines
Initial testing will take place at the university’s McKechnie Family LIFE Home, a research facility designed to evaluate technologies in a home environment. Hello Robot noted researchers will assess Stretch’s effectiveness, usability, reliability, trust, acceptance and ability to operate safely around older adults.
The project will include participatory-design research with 60 older adults, care partners and professional care staff. Home evaluations will involve older adults with mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia and their care partners, while professional care staff will use Stretch during eight-week evaluations in care settings.
Hello Robot CEO and co-founder Aaron Edsinger and University of Illinois professor Wendy A. Rogers are the project’s principal investigators. Hello Robot CTO and co-founder Charlie Kemp is a co-investigator alongside University of Illinois researchers Raksha Mudar and Harshal Mahajan.
“A robot’s value isn’t how complicated the task is. It’s how much agency that task gives someone,” added Edsinger. “This research will help us understand how Stretch can provide useful, trustworthy assistance while supporting family members and professional caregivers to help their loved ones and clients live more independently.”
Hello Robot noted the work builds on earlier NIH-funded research by Hello Robot and the University of Illinois. During that phase, researchers refined Stretch’s capabilities for older adults with cognitive and physical impairments and evaluated the robot in naturalistic settings with ClarkLindsey Life Plan Community. Lindsey Communities will continue as a research partner.
