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Jess
@jessjay
It’s true!!! The population of ppl above 60 is growing all over the world - by 2030, the US will have 90 million ppl over the age of 60, an increase of 14 mil … Japan currently leads the world in robotics for seniors because it’s home to one of the worlds largest gray markets in absolute and relative terms As the US and global aging population increases while birth rates continue to decline, companies will need to adapt their brand strategies/products to cater to this growing market Also! industries such as healthcare, home care, assisted living, leisure, and entertainment are only going to continue to thrive
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depatchedmode
@depatchedmode
Few understand how intractable elder care. Nobody has space for moving parents in. Nobody has money for care in place. Nobody has money for care homes. And I’m saying this as a Canadian who works in tech! Robots are the only way. Downside is I suspect it’ll aggravate social isolation near-term.
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depatchedmode
@depatchedmode
Also — this idea is going to be far more controversial — provider-to-child ratios in child care might be able to increase with robotic assistance. Which is another problem that is incredibly intractable. I’m presently dealing with both sides of this. And I’m not alone.
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Jess
@jessjay
It's certainly a provocative idea, and I can see society moving in this direction! However, it saddens me that we tend to prioritize spending money on robotic solutions rather than simply increasing wages and improving working conditions for childcare providers. Elder care is a different matter, but with declining birth rates and high turnover among teachers/childcare workers, addressing these human factors seems like a better solution than resorting to technological alternatives, esp since such alternatives may have unforeseen consequences on child development/ human interaction
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depatchedmode
@depatchedmode
The issue with increasing staffing and wages for child care providers is that parents already don’t have enough money. Government, or the parents’ employers, have to chip in. Even still, I think finding ways to increase provider to child ratios without reducing quality of care also have to be explored.
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Jess
@jessjay
Oh this definitely falls on govts and companies - They can’t just offload the responsibility of fair wages onto customers, as we've seen happening in the service industry - it just causes unnecessary tension between service workers and their customers
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depatchedmode
@depatchedmode
Yeah, it’s just a sticky “who moves first” scenario. There need to be efficiency gains regardless. But it absolutely needs to be a priority for the whole of society to invest in to ensure the floor is raised.
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