Founder's Letter - Why we are building this company
Companion IQ was born on a phone call with my grandmother who lives 5,386 miles away from me in Denmark.
My grandmother is a woman of incredible wit, sharp memory, and a fierce sense of independence. But, as the years began to catch up with her, I realized that the world she lives in is no longer designed for her safety or her dignity.
Even living in an assisted living facility with multiple other residents and frequently getting visits from her children and grandchildren, my grandmother sought connection where we all do: online. She was targeted by a predator on Facebook; someone who used her kindness and her loneliness against her. Having to explain to her that she was being scammed broke my heart.
In that moment, I became aware that our current “solutions” for aging are broken. We use video surveillance and invasive technology that strip privacy, but haven’t yet built tools that can keep older adults safe while protecting their independence and peace of mind.
When I met Dr. Karen Fortuna, our Chief Science Officer, at a startup accelerator I was running for the Magnuson Center for Entrepreneurship at Dartmouth, I knew that we could work together to build something better.
We started Companion IQ because we believe that no one should have to trade safety for a sense of belonging and we couldn’t find a company that passed all five stages of the Grandmother Test:
- The Dignity Paradox - Does it maintain her dignity and allow her more freedom, not less?
- The Frictionless Factor - Does she have to change her behavior to use the tool?
- The Information Vault - Is her data kept safe and used responsibly?
- The Predator Shield - Will she be protected from scam artists and threats she cannot see?
- The Sanity Check - Will this reduce my anxiety as one of her caregivers?
Companion IQ’s goal is to build the solution I couldn’t find. We use sophisticated, science-verified technology to look out for the people we love without hovering over them. We focus on:
- Science backed research
- Finding small problems before they become big ones
- Safe and attentive companionship that it is only a call or text away
We’re not a replacement for family or health workers, we’re a bridge to cover the gap between clinical care and consistent, compassionate connection. **Because older adults shouldn’t be treated like patients to be monitored, they should be treated like people who matter. **
And every line of code we write passes the Grandmother Test.
We aren’t just building a technology company, we are building a way for seniors to remain independent and safe.
I’m incredibly grateful and excited to be building this company with our team of rockstar scientists, engineers, designers and storytellers. We are currently running pilots and clinical trials in Washington DC, Boston, New York and San Francisco, and I can’t wait to give more people access soon.
I invite you to join us - whether you are looking for a companion for yourself or your parents, or a partner to help scale your agency’s impact. Follow us, check out our website, or sign up to try out a companion of your own (find the link in the comments section below and use invite code: ciqfriends to get free access.
Thank you for trusting us with your family.
With gratitude,
Henrik Scheel Founder, Companion IQ
