Good morning future-focused leaders.

This week, George Margelis, Chair of the Aged Care Industry Information Technology Council, shared a critique of how AI should be positioned in healthcare. Reflecting on a recent Economist article, he argues that replacing workers with automation may cut costs, but it won’t deliver the productivity or quality gains that matter most. In fact, the real risk lies in deskilling the workforce and centralising control. I agree: if we want AI to genuinely improve care, it must empower workers and support local innovation.

What else we cover this week:

• You can now customise your ChatGPT personality

• AI voice agents improve blood pressure monitoring at home

• Upcoming AI sessions 

• AI avatars of the deceased spark ethical debate

• Mecwacare pilots wearable AI sensors

• Brain-computer interface allows control with thought

• Free online textbook on AI safety and ethics

  And more…

^{LATEST DEVELOPMENTS}

READY TO USE TODAY

🤖 You can now choose your ChatGPT personality

In brief: ChatGPT users can now customise the AI’s personality, ranging from sarcastic to empathetic, to better suit different use cases and communication preferences. As someone who gets easily annoyed by AI’s overly chatty replies, I find the Robot mode a refreshing fix!

The details:

• Available to ChatGPT Plus, Pro, and Team users.

• Users can choose from five styles: Default, Cynic, Robot, Listener, and Nerd.

• Each personality offers a distinct tone—from direct and efficient to warm and reflective.

• The chosen personality influences how ChatGPT communicates, not what it can do.

• Any saved memories or custom instructions can override or blend with personality traits.

• Personalities apply only to new conversations; existing chats retain their original tone.

• Practical tasks like coding or emails will still follow user instructions, not personality style.

Personality selection can be adjusted in settings under “Customise ChatGPT” → “Which personality should ChatGPT have?”.

Why it matters: ChatGPT personalities are useful because they let you control how responses are delivered without changing the underlying capabilities. They shape tone, pacing, and style so the interaction feels aligned with your preferences or the context you’re working in. (I prefer Robot as it removes padding and keeps the replies short and efficient. And I like my AI like I like my distant relatives. Present when needed, otherwise silent.)

THE FUTURE OF AGED CARE

🩺 AI voice agents boost blood pressure monitoring at home

In brief: A US study shows that AI voice agents significantly improved how older adults reported their blood pressure at home—cutting costs and increasing clinical accuracy.

The details:

• Conducted at Emory Healthcare, the study involved 2,000 adults, mostly aged 65+, with high blood pressure.

• Patients received phone calls from AI-powered voice agents prompting them to take or report their blood pressure readings.

• The AI system could escalate urgent cases to clinicians and refer others for follow-up care within 24 hours.

• Over 85% of patients were successfully reached; 60% took compliant readings.

• Nearly 2,000 quality gaps in blood pressure control were closed, improving CMS Star Ratings from 1-Star to 4-Star.

• Use of AI voice agents cut the cost-per-reading by 88.7% compared to using nurses.

• Patients reported high satisfaction, averaging 9 out of 10 after calls.

Why it matters: As more older adults manage chronic conditions like hypertension at home, AI tools like voice agents offer a scalable way to support independent ageing. This approach shows how technology can bridge gaps in routine monitoring and improve care coordination while at the same time easing some of the pressure on health care staff. It’s certainly a promising model.

^{COMING UP}

🚀 COMING UP | AI Leadership in Aged Care – Workforce Capability Evening
On Monday 29 September, the evening before the Ageing Australia National Conference, Ausmed hosts Australia’s first AI leadership event dedicated to workforce capability in aged care. This exclusive gathering brings together 100 sector leaders at the SkyPoint Observation Deck, Gold Coast, to explore how AI is reshaping aged care operations, workforce, and leadership.

I’ll be giving the opening address, joined by speakers from Anglicare, Regis, Ausmed, and others, sharing real strategies and lessons from the frontlines of AI adoption. Expect candid insights, practical takeaways, and connections with peers shaping the future of AI in care.

📍 SkyPoint Observation Deck, Gold Coast
📅 Fully booked - register for the waitlist

🧩 LATER THIS MONTH | Free Webinar: AI in Care Settings
Artificial intelligence is entering care environments in new ways—supporting wellbeing, reducing isolation, and streamlining workflows. But with these opportunities come ethical and practical questions. This webinar on Tuesday 30 September will introduce core concepts, risks, and opportunities, with a focus on practical applications. Topics include: responsible, people-centred implementation strategies; evaluating pilots and outcomes; and addressing common misconceptions about AI in care.

📍 Online | Hosted by Anglicare NSW
📅 Read more and register 

^{QUICK HITS}

🏥 Mecwacare has begun a three-month pilot of InteliCare’s sensors and wearable devices at its Trescowthick Centre in Victoria. The system uses predictive analytics to give care teams real-time updates, detect early signs of distress or fall risk, and support personalised care planning. Feedback from residents, families, and staff will help decide on broader rollout.

🧠 UCLA researchers have developed a non-invasive brain-computer interface that lets users control devices using only their thoughts. Using an EEG cap and an AI “co-pilot,” a paralysed participant was able to complete robotic tasks they couldn’t do alone — all without implants or surgery. Published in Nature Machine Intelligence, the study shows how shared autonomy could enable safer, affordable assistive tech for those with severe motor impairments.

🪦 AI avatars of deceased people—sometimes called deadbots—are increasingly being used in advocacy, courtrooms, and even family interactions. Researchers warn that these tools, which can be highly persuasive, are also being primed for commercial use, from advertising to data collection. With few legal protections in place, critics fear exploitation of grief and identity, while companies experiment with ways to monetise digital afterlives.

💔 Chatbots are becoming more “humanlike” by design, and if you remember the ELIZA effect that we discussed a couple of issues ago, that might be a problem. A new article from The Conversation argues that today's AI systems are being built to mimic friends, lovers, or therapists—rather than tools to empower knowledge and discovery. This anthropomorphic design taps into deep human instincts, making us form emotional bonds with machines. The authors warn that this is not harmless novelty—it could distort how people understand and use AI, with consequences ranging from delusion to harm.

📚 "Introduction to AI Safety, Ethics, and Society” is a free online textbook by Center for AI Safety Executive Director Dan Hendrycks. It is designed to be accessible for a non-technical audience and integrates insights from a range of disciplines to cover how modern AI systems work, technical and societal challenges we face in ensuring that these systems are developed safely, and strategies for effectively managing risks from AI while capturing its benefits.

^COMMUNITY

AI, Workforce and Aged Care – Reflections from the Invox CHSP Conference 2025

Last week, the Invox CHSP Conference 2025 brought together sector leaders, innovators, and practitioners for two days of focused discussion on aged care reform, service delivery, and future directions.

I was invited to speak on the role of AI in aged care (thanks to Jodi Livesley for the invitation), followed by a panel session with Paul Sadler (Invox) and Stuart Hutcheon (StewartBrown), moderated by Roland Naufal from Invox.

My presentation centred on two critical conversations the sector must now have about AI:

• How to recognise and support the AI tools that staff are already using informally — by developing appropriate policies, training, and safeguards.

• How to begin using AI to strengthen service delivery — through practical, responsible steps for implementation.

A standout insight came from Age Discrimination Commissioner Robert Fitzgerald AM, who reminded us in his opening remarks that technology and workforce strategy must be addressed together. Every digital tool is shaped by the people who use it — and sustained impact depends on investing in both.

I'm not here to hype AI. I'm here to help you understand it, use it, and learn as it evolves. Whether you're testing a new tool, using it to lighten your workload, or keeping pace with the changes, I hope you found something here worth your time.

Feel free to forward this to your network or share it with your team.

See you next Tuesday,
George