The goal of the First Geriatronics Summit is to highlight current and planned robotics solutions in the context of geriatronics and to raise awareness of the relevant technologies among policymakers. According to its website, the event, which will take place on June 20 and 21, 2022, in Garmisch-Partenkirchen (Germany), aims to answer the following questions: 1. How can geriatronics be used to address the growing shortage and geographic disparities in caregivers and overburdened healthcare? 2. How can robotics and AI promote independence, mobility, self-determination and health for older people for as long as possible? 3. What are the rules of autonomy and how can moral, ethical, cultural, and personal challenges and dilemmas be addressed for geriatrics? Invited scientists are Prof. Dr.-Ing. Tamim Asfour (KIT Karlsruhe), Dr. Sylvain Calinon (EPFL), Dr. Tadej Petrič (Jožef Stefan Institute), Dr. Matteo Laffranchi (Italian Institute of Technology – IIT), Prof. Adriana Tapus (Institut Polytechnique de Paris), Prof. Jim Tørresen (University of Oslo), Prof. Dr.- Ing. Sami Haddadin (TUM), Prof. Dr. med. Alena M. Buyx (TUM), Prof. Dr. oec. Oliver Bendel (Hochschule für Wirtschaft FHNW), Prof. Dr. Christian Djeffal (TUM), Prof. Vera Lúcia Raposo (University of Coimbra), Prof. Dr. Lee Bygrave (University of Oslo), and Prof. Dr. Martin Ebers (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin/University of Tartu). The event is supported by the Munich Institute of Robotics and Machine Intelligence (MIRMI) of the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and the Volkswagen Foundation, among others.
BY OLIVER BENDEL
