Soli is a pet-like companion for elderly people living with dementia. It offers gentle voice and visual reminders, a digital memory diary of loved ones, and emotion-aware companionship. The project was funded with S$2,000 through SUTD's Baby Shark Fund.
Most dementia products focus on safety or activities, and few address loneliness and the need for comfort and routine. Through caregiver interviews, consultations with SG Enable, and outreach to 16 dementia care organisations, we learned that many people with dementia cannot navigate apps or menus. So Soli is completely hands-off for the patient: a caregiver sets everything up once, and Soli does the rest.
We took a software-first approach to refine features before building hardware. Over three iterations we moved from an app-like interface, which was too complex, to a fully passive, voice-driven companion. The v1 prototype is a React web app built with AI-assisted development, with modular logic so it can later be ported to a physical device.
I led outreach to dementia care organisations, conducted user interviews and expert consultations, documented our use of AI, and wrote our progress reports and presentation materials.
Stay tuned for updates about my Soli journey :)