Paging Dr. Alexa: Worrell Testing Potential of Voice-enabled Tech in Healthcare and the Home

Worrell, the designer of one of the more memorable logos in the industry, has built a business designing healthcare technology to be easier for physicians. Now, the Minneapolis-based design firm is building a business developing how consumer-oriented technology – like Amazon’s Alexa and virtual reality – can serve the healthcare industry. In this interview, CEO Kai Worrell and Kristen Shardlow, the company’s director of user experience, explain how inexpensive tools such as the Amazon Echo could rebuild bonds between patients and healthcare providers. Shardlow says, “The speed at which all of this is unfolding” makes it difficult to project how quickly these technologies could be absorbed into mainstream healthcare. But, with studies suggesting verbal cues will account for more than 30% of all interactions with digital devices, she adds, “It’s safe to say healthcare is not going to be the same.” Virtual and augmented reality devices also represent a huge opportunity. “Voice is really powerful,” Worrell asserts. “But right around the corner are all of these toys that use voice but also combine visual inputs as well.” The applications may start in the surgical suite, but as technology gets less expensive we might see such tech in the home as well.