Buddi is an iOS app with helpful resources, a friendly chatbot, and a very easy-to-use user interface, making it the perfect “buddi” and companion tool for senior citizens to navigate this pandemic!
Our app provides a resource for seniors in several ways. Since some seniors aren’t as familiar with modern technology, we decided to incorporate an easy user interface with an interactive chatbot capable of having conversations and answering questions. Our AI chatbot, "Buddi," provides both a verbal and typed response to users’ commands. In addition, seniors can conveniently set reminders through the app by directly chatting with Buddi. The home page contains a compiled list of resources, including a database of special senior-only times to visit their local grocery stores, updated CDC recommendations, and self-care strategies. The app also provides a platform for a caretaker to track the location and current status of the senior, which might come in handy after the outbreak. After the COVID-19 pandemic is over, the app will also provide recommendations based on location for nearby events to build community and combat elder isolation, but for now, that portion of the app is dedicated to ideas for at-home entertainment.
The CDC warns that older adults (65 years and older) are at higher risk for severe illness, including the novel coronavirus. As of March 28, 2020, the elderly population accounts for an estimated 8 out of every 10 deaths due to COVID-19. To help this at-risk population, we decided to create a platform to a) aggregate helpful resources for seniors (such as safe senior-only times to visit grocery stores, for instance, or volunteers who are willing to run errands for immunocompromised people) and b) serve as an antidote to quarantine-produced loneliness and elder isolation by providing entertainment options and a sociable chatbot.
We will continue to add features to make the app easily accessible and more useful for seniors. In the future, we plan on connecting our app to local Nextdoor or Facebook lists of volunteers to help with shopping or necessary errands. We also think it would be helpful to include a feature for seniors to connect with family members and other people in the community. After the stay-at-home guidance has been lifted, our app could also help list community events, senior-tailored exercise (including recommended nearby walking routes) and provide a means for caretakers to check in on seniors. We will also try to connect our app to different meditation apps (HeadSpace, Calm, etc). We also plan on incorporating live video sessions for seniors to participate in based on their interests. After these features are built, we will launch Buddi to the App Store on Apple and Android.
We used Swift, Xcode, Cocoapods, and Dialogflow to create our app for use on iOS platforms. We also used HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and a Python Flask backend to create an accompanying website (with a domain courtesy of Domain.com) to describe the app’s features and publicize downloading our app: buddi.tech.
We are hoping to release this app to the app store in the coming months if all goes well!
for more info, please check out our website (with domain courtesy of Domain.com, thanks :) ): buddi.tech