OpenAI, AARP Launch AI Skills Jam in 10 US Cities for Older Adults
Updated
Updated · OpenAI · Sep 16
OpenAI, AARP Launch AI Skills Jam in 10 US Cities for Older Adults
3 articles · Updated · OpenAI · Sep 16
Summary
OpenAI Academy and AARP’s OATS on Sept. 16 rolled out a free, in-person AI Skills Jam in 10 U.S. communities to help older adults use ChatGPT confidently in daily life.
The workshops focus on practical tasks—planning trips, understanding bills, pursuing hobbies and staying connected—while teaching participants to spot scams through warning signs such as urgent language, secrecy and suspicious links.
The program extends a multi-year OpenAI effort with OATS through Senior Planet, reflecting rising adoption among older users: U.S. messages tied to people 55 and older grew from 6% to nearly 10% in a year.
OpenAI said tens of millions of times a week people ask ChatGPT to assess suspicious messages, emails and websites, positioning the training as part of its broader anti-fraud and AI-literacy push.
Will OpenAI's push into household-centered AI fundamentally change how older adults combat isolation, or just expose them to new digital risks?
With elder fraud reaching billions, can a simple AI skills class truly protect older adults from increasingly sophisticated voice cloning and deepfakes?