A robot holds a spoon and feeds a patient. It seems as if a person is caring for them.
Professor Park Hyeong-sun of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) Department of Mechanical Engineering said at the 2025 World Bio Summit at the Shilla Seoul on the 17th that as society ages faster, robotics can fill gaps in medical care.
The Bio Summit is an event held by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the World Health Organization (WHO) to promote human health. This year, about 1,000 people from international organizations and governments, corporations, and academia attended. Three sessions were held on medical AI (artificial intelligence), aging-care medical technology, and bio clusters. Park presented tailored technologies by stage of frailty in the second session on aging-care medical technology.
The global population aged 65 and older is expected to reach 1.5 billion by 2050. Accordingly, age tech (age tech, technology friendly to older adults), which supports older people, is drawing attention. It is technology that helps older adults' health, care, and housing so they can live as members of society while maintaining dignity as they age.
Park divided old age into three stages: relatively healthy early old age, mid-stage old age, and late-stage old age. In early old age, health should be maintained for as long as possible. Park said, If diseases are detected in advance with artificial intelligence (AI), one can live as healthily as possible.
In mid-stage old age, technologies that enable independent living at home are needed. Park said, With a robot that replicates the human hand, you can pick up a can or cut thin paper, adding, If there is a humanoid (humanoid, human-shaped robot), it would even be possible to ask it to find an apple in the refrigerator, cut it with a knife, and bring it to me.
In late-stage old age, robots that can provide intensive care in nursing homes are needed. Park said, A robot can feed a patient in a nursing home by checking the location of the patient's mouth with a camera while holding a spoon, adding, In the meantime, it checks how many times the patient chews and whether they actually swallow. Park also said, A robot can turn a patient's body to manage bedsores (decubitus ulcers), or when a patient suddenly tries to jump out of bed, it can detect it in advance, block them with a robotic arm, and prevent a fall.
Examples of applying robots in medical settings were also introduced that day. Cha Won-cheol, head of the Digital Innovation Center at Samsung Medical Center, said, We handle 75% of logistics-related tasks in the hospital through robots, adding, Medical staff can reduce their workloads. Robots handle the transport of supplies, and medical staff focus on treating patients.
Minister Jeong Eun-kyung of the Ministry of Health and Welfare said at the event, As AI and biotech advance, the world faces the task of pursuing both innovation and equity in health care, adding, We will push for health care innovation for all so that the world can enjoy the benefits of technological progress across economic, social, and geographic barriers.