Eventful Week...literally.

October 11 - 18 was a fantastic whirlwind week of bi-coastal events and growing momentum behind Aging2.0’s mission to catalyze innovation in the aging space. We held 3 Aging2.0 events in 3 cities (Palo Alto, CA | Cambridge, MA | New York, NY), sent out our first Aging2.0 CoverAGE newsletter (to more than 1000 people), unveiled the new Aging2.0 logo and brand identity designed by the talented team at Infinia, participated in a “Longevity Lounge” thought leader breakfast hosted by our friends at Redstar Ventures, were quoted in a Bloomberg News piece about ageless design and had some great meetings with potential Aging2.0 partners / sponsors (stay tuned!). Most importantly, we got to see more than 200 of you in person in the past week – thank you for attending the events and being part of the community!

We started a new tradition at our last two events of asking attendees to introduce themselves by saying their name, organization and three “tags” about what they are interested in. We’ve found it to be a quick and effective way to get a sense of who else is in the room, which greases the wheels for optimal and enthusiastic networking during the breaks. The word clouds below capture the tags that attendees used to describe themselves in Boston (white) and New York (black) respectively. The larger the font, the more times that tag was used. As you can see, our attendees are dynamic group that brings fresh “2.0” perspectives to the aging space.

In keeping with our theme of 3 "tags", here are the key takeaways (in increments of 3) from our 3 recent events.

Aging2.0 | New York (10.18.2012) @ The Hallmark by Brookdale

Founder’s Tales

Alan Blaustein (CEO, CarePlanners) – “10 Lessons Learned” from a successful serial entrepreneur

• It’s all about passion, culture, trust and integrity


• Apps are noise…make sure you are solving a real problem.


• "Conventional thinking is death"

ReServe (Matches professionals 55+ with rewarding part-time assignments at nonprofits & public institutions)

• Create win-win solutions.


• Tap into the large and growing natural resource – the wisdom of older adults.


• FYI – we (Aging2.0) plan to facilitate similar matches between 50+ professionals and for-profit start-ups. Stay tuned!

• Design can change a category.


• Mindset shift: Assistive devices from stigma to self expression


• “Can a bedpan be a beautiful design object?”

• It’s not about technology for technology’s sake – use tech to address a specific pain point and make sure it fits into the consumer’s life.


• “Connected Independence” can decrease stress and provide piece of mind.


• Think about intergenerational issues when defining the need you are addressing and when planning your go to market strategy.

Aging2.0 | Boston (10.17.2012) @ Redstar Ventures

Thought Leaders:  Steven Gullans, PhD (Managing Director, Excel Venture Management), David Rose (CEO of Ditto, Founder of Vitality GlowCaps), Jody Holtzman (SVP Thought Leadership AARP)

Pitches: Serality, Qmedic, Making Care Easier, Podimetrics

Recap Tags:

• Ambient – “We are moving from a world based on active Inputs…to a world resonating with passive Inputs” - Steve Gullans. #Podimetrics #Qmedic #Glowcaps #SmartFurniture


• Engagement – Use technology to optimize engagement - socially (#Serality), remotely (#Qmedic) and consistently (#podimetrics)


• Solutions – Who’s job is it to monitor the monitors? In order to make “Connected Independence” a reality, we need to move from disparate products to platforms (with APIs!) that can evolve as customers needs change.  #Qmedic #Kinect? #AppleTV?

Aging2.0 | Palo Alto (10.11.2012) @ Stanford Center on Longevity

Thought Leaders: Gretchen Addi (IDEO), Rupa Charveldi (Raaya Design), David Jaffe (Stanford Engineering School).

Pitches: Care Architecture, CareLinx and Unfrazzle.

Recap Tags:

• Design: We all are Designers.  Empathize, make connections, be optimistic, collaborate and experiment.


• Connect: Neighbors (CareArchitecture), Families to caregivers (CareLinx) and care team members (Unfrazzle)


• Simplify: By design, by fostering connections (CareArchitecture), by disintermediation (CareLinx), by improving communication (Unfrazzle)

The Aging2.0 “World Tour” continues. Hope to see you at our upcoming events:

• November 8 | Aging^2.0 | DC @ Arent Fox LLP


• November 15 | Innovation Clinic @ AgeTech Conference (Pasadena, CA)


• November 22| Aging^2.0 | London @ Google Campus London


• December 3-5 |EngAGE Pavilion @ mHealth Summit  (Washington DC)