While the immediate future is unlikely to yield AI pseudo-human carers, the notion of robots aiding the elderly is closer than ever. All over the world – especially in Japan, where more than a quarter of the population is over 65 – technology and healthcare are starting to overlap.

What does it feel like to grow old? Professor Philip Tew and Nick Hubble asked over 300 seniors to document their experiences. The findings shed new light on this untapped, misunderstood demographic, overturning assumptions about who seniors really are.

Learning a language can be expensive, dull and lacking in cultural context, while living in a retirement home can be lonely. But now, a Brazilian language school's 'Speaking Exchange' project is mutually helping kids and grannies from US care homes through one intuitive campaign.

In response to Japan's increasing number of elderly people, video game companies are installing arcade games into nursing homes, with some even adding health benefits. One nursing home is actually owned by a branch of PacMan developer Namco Bandai.