The conversation around inclusive technology at this year’s IVI Summit took place at Maynooth University, where our team had the pleasure of representing the Age-Friendly AI initiative and taking part in the panel discussion.

Following our presentation delivered by our Project Coordinator Patricia Lucha Fariña, we participated in an engaging panel discussion focused on building accessible, human-centred digital environments. As AI continues to shape everyday life, our discussion centred on a vital question: How do we develop and adopt AI technologies so they cater to the preferences and needs of everyone?

What we hear from our discussion workshops

Beyond representing the Age-Friendly AI project, we brought the voices of older adults directly to the summit, sharing some key insights gathered from our discussion workshops and national conversations:

• Maintain Transparency: Trust is a key factor of inclusive technology. For example, participants of our workshops often emphasised that elements like consent forms must be clear and easy to understand so everyone can engage confidently and stay informed about how their data is used.
• Incorporate Lived Experiences: Continuous dialogue is essential. The end user needs to be involved at the developing stage of technology to ensure that it reflects real-world concerns and adapts to their preferences and needs.
• Foster Knowledge Exchange: Developers, researchers, policymakers, and community groups must actively collaborate. Sharing best practices across all sectors is crucial to building accessible tools and confidence in all users rather than leaving people behind.

Read more

You can read more about insights from our workshops in this wrap-up post from the project’s discussion phase: