Voice-activated ‘Alma’ aims to help residents stay independent longer
At 91 years old, Michael Forrest says he has lived the kind of life many dream of—traveling the world, owning a plane, and living on a boat in the Bahamas and Florida Keys.
“I never thought I’d get this far,” he said. “I’ve done everything I’ve wanted. I’m not afraid of life. I relish how fortunate I am to live it, and I want others to feel that same joy right ‘til the very end.”
That desire—to help others age well—led to his latest mission: creating an AI-powered companion he calls Alma. Living in the senior-living community of Solivita, Forrest sees the daily struggles of aging. Adult children of seniors want to help but often don’t have the time. Those seniors crave independence, but isolation, forgotten medications, missed appointments and scammers can erode their quality of life.
Alma—which stands for Assisting Livability for Mature Adults — runs on a smartphone and engages in natural, voice-first conversations. It remembers details shared by the user, adapts to their moods and preferences, and provides practical support such as medication and appointment reminders, assistance with bills and daily tasks, hydration and exercise prompts, and even an SOS feature to alert family or caregivers. “She becomes a genuinely helpful, trustworthy friend,” Forrest explained.
This isn’t Forrest’s first business venture. Since 1957, he has built one business after another. His last major venture started in 1984, locating absent parents for county agencies around the country. “That evolved into becoming one of the first background checking companies,” he said. “I’ve never worked for anybody, I’ve always created my own businesses where I saw a need. Sometimes they worked, and sometimes they didn’t … but I had to try.”
And now, Alma. But Forrest is not developing Alma alone. O.J. Wilcox, an experienced senior engineer serving as co-founder and chief technology officer, has volunteered her expertise. Forrest said students and professors from the University of Central Florida and the University of South Florida are contributing, and Tim Timmerman with the Osceola Council on Aging has provided guidance rooted in the real needs of local seniors.
Those needs are many and growing. The U.S. population of adults 65 and older now exceeds 61 million and is projected to reach from 71-73 million by 2030, according to Census Bureau trends.
“More and more people want to age in place,” Forrest said. “They don’t want to be stuck in an old-age home,” and said he hopes Alma will help them prolong their independence and do just that.
Beta testing of Alma is expected to start within about two months, and he is determined to provide it for free to seniors and veterans.
Forrest has launched a GoFundMe to cover development costs, and welcomes volunteers, donors, investors and grant-writing help—all while keeping the heart of the project focused on doing good. For more information about Alma, visit www.almamyfriend.com.
To Forrest, time is precious. “Death is inevitable, so why fear it? Just embrace it when it comes,” he said. “But I’ll live every day thanking the Lord for every day that I have to be on this planet and to do good.”
