OpenAI, AARP, and OATS launch multi-year push to help older adults use AI safely
Partnership rolls out nationwide training, new privacy resources, and an OpenAI Academy video on spotting scams.
OpenAI is partnering with AARP and Older Adults Technology Services (OATS) on a multi-year program to help older adults use AI safely, according to a press release.
The launch begins with an OpenAI Academy video on using ChatGPT to spot scams. AARP works with people aged 50 and over, and OATS runs the Senior Planet digital skills program.
OpenAI says, “In 2024, OpenAI worked with OATS, which helps older adults thrive in a digital world, to launch the Societal Resilience Fund, a $2 million commitment supported by Microsoft, to strengthen OATS’s flagship Senior Planet program as well as the work of other key partners.”
The next phase includes updated in-person and online Senior Planet curriculum, subgrants to local partners to scale AI literacy, a refreshed AI for Older Adults Guide, a new course on protecting privacy and data, and specialized trainings for AARP state offices. The partners also plan an annual national survey of AI use among older adults.
The Academy video outlines common warning signs, urgent language, secrecy, suspicious links, and frames ChatGPT as a “second pair of eyes.” OpenAI notes, “The message is simple: pause, think, and ask. ChatGPT can help flag suspicious messages, but it should be combined with and does not replace personal judgment and basic safety steps like avoiding links or sharing personal information.”
OpenAI concludes, “Together with OATS and communities across the globe, we’re making AI education accessible to everyone, at every age.”
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