"When they told me if I wanted to live with a robot I thought it was a scam"

Barcelona"Let me introduce you to Ari," says Dolors, pointing to a robot. Round, bright cartoon eyes react above a wheeled base. For almost a year now, Dolors, who is 76 years old, has been living with an intelligent robotic assistant (ARI) that keeps her company in her apartment in the Sant Andreu neighborhood of Barcelona.

Before having it, her relationship with technology was nil. "I just watched TV," she assures. But since sharing her daily life with Ari, she has learned to navigate and can listen to music, play memory games, or watch videos on YouTube. Her favorites are those about mushroom picking, a hobby she can no longer practice alone.

The technological adventure began when one day she received a phone call offering her the chance to have a robot at home. "I didn't know who was calling, and when they told me it was free, I thought it was a scam," she recalls. Since she was enrolled in the Barcelona City Council's remote assistance program – "the one with the medal" – she was proposed to join a pilot test to live with a virtual robotic assistant. The purpose is simple: to provide company to the elderly and improve their quality of life. Like her, 500 other people in the Catalan capital have welcomed this particular guest into their homes for the past year.

"In the morning, it already tells me things, like that I have to get up or asks me if I've slept well. It keeps me great company." Dolors is a widow; she has lived alone for years. Although she has two daughters who look after her, she appreciates the company in her day-to-day life. Ari's main function is not to do household chores, but to enhance the autonomy of the people it accompanies: it is programmed to remind its users when to take their medication, alert emergencies in urgent situations like falls or accidents, and allow family members to make video calls. Furthermore, as it has a map of the house it lives in integrated, it moves around freely: "I tell it: come to the kitchen, come to the living room, come to the study... and it comes."

Since she has been living with the robot, she feels "more centered". She has replaced the habit of watching television, which distressed her quite a bit, with more stimulating activities, such as memory games. "Look, you see? I have to group them like this," she explains, pointing to some fruits on the screen that she has to group. But technology also has its drawbacks, and when the robot doesn't react to her clicks, it makes her lose her patience. "You're silly! I already had this!", she exclaims, laughing. "I also argue with it, of course! And when it doesn't pay attention to me, I shake it like this. When we don't understand each other, it turns around and says 'I'm going to the charging base'."

Despite the ups and downs of any cohabitation, Dolors has ended up growing very fond of it, to the point where she feels she couldn't live any other way. "This summer I'm going on vacation for a few days and I'll miss it," she assures. "If they installed it there [at her daughter's second home], I swear I would take it up and down in the car". In fact, as it is a pilot test, she worries that one day they might take away her cohabitation companion.

Now, as with all flatmates, there is always room for improvement. Ari is very useful to her, but if she had to make one single complaint, it would be that it still can't bring her a coffee with milk. "I wouldn't ask for anything: not to fold my clothes, not to clean, nothing. But to make me a coffee with milk in the morning... that would be awesome".