Shai, thank you so much for taking the time to speak to us. Would you mind introducing yourself and your business to our readers?
Sure! I’m Shai Granot from Effectivate. We offer an innovative web-based cognitive training program aimed to help older adults experience successful ageing.
That sounds like an exciting innovation. What specific ageing issue does Effectivate aim to address?
With quality of life ascending, the number of people diagnosed with age-related diseases such as dementia is increasing rapidly. Previous studies have suggested that cognitive training may reduce dementia risks significantly. Cognition and overall well-being are at the centre of healthy ageing, since this is what allows people to be more in charge of their lives. People who cater for their cognition are expected to live longer, live healthier and be at reduced risk for diseases, falling and car accidents.
How does Effectivate achieve this?
Effectivate was built specifically for older adults using a user-centred approach, and thus have incorporated age-appropriate design and UX principals. Furthermore, the workouts use algorithms for optimising the personalised training, with special emphasis on the cognitive functions that decline substantially with age, and with a unique feature of continuous monitoring of spatial attention. Finally, our innovative web-based cognitive training program is the only one that uses two complementary aspects: Restoration of cognitive abilities, and compensation for cognitive decline.
That’s amazing and seems to go much further than the “brain training” programs many of us may have already seen or be using. Can you tell us a little more about the background of Effectivate and how you got to where you are today?
The scientific background is based on findings suggesting that brain training can strengthen neural networks related to cognitive functions and create a cognitive reserve, thus supporting the prevention of cognitive decline mainly caused by age. The personal background for the development of Effectivate came me after a close case of dementia in my family. The understanding that technology might truly affect brain health was what drove my initial passion in this venture.
It's amazing how many businesses like this are driven by personal experiences and stories like the one you’ve just told. What’s the current status of Effectivate in the marketplace?
Effectivate launched its MVP during 2018 and have been improving the platform ever since. We have over 15,000 paying customers that completed over 15 million games, with an average of three training sessions per week for each user.
Lastly, we were recently chosen by the biggest HMO in Israel (Clalit health care) as their exclusive supplier in the brain training field, and have a successful and ongoing partnership with them.
Thank you for taking the time to speak with us and for sharing your story, we look forward to seeing you at Longevitech!
Learn more at https://effectivate.com/.
Longevitech TLV 2023 takes place across 13th – 14th February.