Baby Boomers, Elderly Using Technology More Than Expected, Panelists Say

Senior citizens are using new technology and online tools more regularly, said tech industry and online service experts during a panel at the White House Conference on Aging Monday. Representatives from companies such as Peapod and Uber said they are surprised at how many elderly citizens use their respective products. Tom Parkinson, Peapod chief technology officer, said the reason for the expanded use of the Internet-based services among the elderly is that they are beginning to focus on what the technology is allowing them to do, rather than the technology itself. An Uber representative told the audience it would begin working with two senior centers in Gainesville, Florida, to provide free and reduced-price rides and to educate the members of the centers on the technology used to access Uber. A representative from the company also said it has begun launching the senior citizen focused initiatives in several cities across the U.S. One of the problems that the older generation faces when attempting to use new technology appears when they can't see the results of the technology, such as when using cloud services, said Chuck Wallace, associate computer science professor at Michigan Technological University. Wallace said that even though more elderly members of society are embracing technology, it becomes hard for them to grasp when it they can no longer see it or readily access it.