Start-Up Develops Tiny Wearable That It Hopes Will Help Prevent Falls

Earpiece from Boston’s Lumia Health wins AARP pitch competition

Edward C. Baig,

Updated January 13, 2025

AARP

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Published January 09, 2025

/ Updated January 13, 2025

The winner of AgeTech After Dark, Lumia Health CEO Daniel Lee, center, with Andy Miller, head of AARP's AgeTech Collaborative, and AARP's CEO, Dr. Myechia Minter-Jordan.

Roger Kisby for AARP

In this story

Solving Dad’s problem • Lumia Health • Appscent Medical • Beacon Technology Solutions • Cōpe Life • EyeControl

For years, Daniel Lee’s now 68-year-old father had what his son describes as “very severe falling issues,” so the younger Lee, now 32, decided to figure out what was wrong.

Lee discovered that the cause was all about less-than-optimal blood flow to the head, inspiring the start-up he cofounded, Boston-based Lumia Health, to develop a tiny earpiece called Lumia. The device is designed to track blood flow to your head and provide an early warning to help prevent brain fog, dizziness, fainting and falls.

A panel of three judges Jan. 8 chose Lumia over four other start-ups for the top $10,000 prize at the 2025 AgeTech After Dark pitch competition, held during the CES annual technology conference in Las Vegas. The company also will get the opportunity for mentoring from the AgeTech Collaborative from AARP, which encourages the development of technology that helps adults age as they desire.

AARP is in its 10th continuous year of hosting various pitch competitions, which began in 2015 with the AARP Foundation’s Aging in Place Challenge. AARP’s Innovation Labs, which houses the start-up focused AgeTech Collaborative, took over the contests in 2018. For the past three years, the competition has taken place at CES and been called AgeTech After Dark.

Here are the five start-ups that were part of the pitch fest.

Courtesy Lumia Health

Lumia discovers a cause of dizziness, way to curb falls

The problem. One in 4 older adults complain of chronic dizziness to their doctors, a main cause of falls, says Lee, Lumia Health’s chief executive.

“Competitive products detect falls as they happen, but that’s too late. The damage is already done,” Lee says.

The product. Lumia’s earpiece is meant for the left ear and is about a fifth of the size of an Apple AirPod, which can be worn at the same time. The tiny solar powered wearable also can be worn with most hearing devices.

According to Lee, a shallow ear artery is a biometric gold mine. The Lumia earpiece can track abnormal blood flow there when problems first start to show up.

Now someone at a high risk of falling can find out through an app that their blood flow is dropping. Lumia is working on a solution so a user can be buzzed with a notification ahead of a potential spill.

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“That’s a huge valuable feature. It’s just that takes a little more time,” Lee says, conceding the product is still in a late-stage beta phase as the company tunes the experience for older adults. After a person is diagnosed with a blood flow issue, he envisions Lumia becoming a device to prevent fainting, like someone with diabetes who wears a continuous glucose monitor.

Cost. $379 for the hardware and a custom fit, plus up to $19.99 for a monthly subscription, starting in February.

Courtesy Appscent Medical

Scents can shut down sleep apnea, company says

The problem. More than 900 million people around the world suffer from sleep apnea, which causes sufferers to stop breathing repeatedly while they slumber. Left untreated, the condition can lead to a variety of other significant health risks, including diabetes, heart disease and obesity.

The product. Appscent Medical, headquartered in Ra’anana, Israel, about 10 miles north of Tel Aviv, says it has developed contactless sleep apnea therapy based on what Chief Executive Yosi Azoulay calls the “power of scent.” The company’s approach doesn’t require masks, tubes or surgery — or a clunky continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine.

“Just breathe,” he says.

Wireless sensors monitor a person’s breathing patterns during sleep. If signs of apnea are detected, an artificial intelligence-based algorithm releases natural scents such as citrus, lavender or other herbs, which triggers the body to breathe in.

Appscent has started clinical trials in Israel and has begun the process required to ultimately land U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval.

Cost. To be determined.

Courtesy Beacon Technology Solutions

Device uses light to kill germs without harming us

The problem. Founder Susie Spigelman of Chicago-based Beacon Technology Solutions calls her product a “smart disinfectant device” that helps reduce the spread of illnesses by eliminating up to 99.99 percent of air and surface bacteria, viruses, molds and allergens. It targets homes, hospitals and assisted living centers.

The product. The hand-sized Beacon device, which the company says does not use toxic chemicals nor harsh cleaning products, can be mounted on a wall and plugged in. It tackles pathogens at the cellular level using an invisible, specific ultraviolet-C light wavelength that has been shown not to penetrate humans’ skin and eyes but kills germs.

The concept is similar to devices that use UV-C light to disinfect cellphones and other electronic devices. But Beacon employs a different wavelength that is safe to be used in large, occupied areas, the company says.

Cost. $999. The company recommends one device for every 1,000-square-foot room. An internal bulb is projected to last around 10,000 hours.

App aims to coach older adults through life’s stresses

The problem. Older adults face stress as they age: feeling lonely, losing a spouse, worrying about outliving their savings, wrestling with chronic illness.

The product. The mission of Cōpe, described as a resilience app, is to live up to its name and help older adults manage their anxiety, grief and tension. Using live coaching, artificial intelligence, biometrics and neuroscience, we “turn info into insights and action” in real time, says Monique Andrews, CEO of Cōpe Life based in Half Moon Bay, California.

The app is not a substitute for in-person mental health therapy, the company’s website says. Cōpe is working with hospitals and large nonprofits to help improve older adults’ confidence and quality of life.

Cost. $9 a month.

Tracking eye movements gives voice to those who can’t speak

The problem. You wake up in a hospital intensive care unit (ICU), disoriented, unable to speak and not knowing where you are.

The product. Using 24-7 eye-tracking, a cloud-based platform and other technologies, Tel Aviv-based EyeControl says it can help patients recovering from heavy sedation or a stroke, on a ventilator or “locked in” because of degenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or multiple sclerosis communicate with medical providers and loved ones.

A headset with an earpiece and a small infrared camera tracks patients’ eye movements in response to audio. Families can send greetings, patients can indicate music they prefer and medical staff can give instructions to help a patient through the isolation of an ICU where loved ones’ visits are limited.

The eye movements are converted into data for health care providers and allow for more personalized care, the company says. EyeControl also has a version of the device for home use, allowing a patient who cannot speak the ability to communicate by navigating through audio menus on a tablet computer to “say” his needs.

EyeControl is pursuing further use of its technology in health care centers and homes.

Cost. To be determined.

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This story, originally published Jan. 9, 2025, was updated to add the price of the Beacon disinfectant device.

Edward C. Baig covers technology and other consumer topics. He previously worked for USA Today, BusinessWeek, U.S. News & World Report and Fortune, and is author of Macs for Dummies and coauthor of iPhone for Dummies and iPad for Dummies. Follow him on LinkedIn; Threads; and X, formerly known as Twitter.

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