Active Education & Skills Psychology & Behaviour

An AI-powered application support service for over-65s that automates completion of complex forms, increasing access to financial support

Funder InnovateUK (part of UKRI)
Recipient organisation Healthspan Technologies Limited
Funding £265K
Period Mar 2025 — Aug 2026

In plain English

AI plain-English summary

A phone-based AI assistant will complete complex government forms for older people in a single conversation, without requiring apps or in-person visits. The problem is straightforward: millions of older adults in the UK are eligible for financial support such as Attendance Allowance and Pension Credits, but the application forms are too complicated to complete without help. Many lack internet access or digital literacy, and existing solutions often require multiple steps or technical know-how. Kinly’s service aims to remove that barrier entirely by using AI-powered agents that handle the entire form-filling process over the phone. If the service works as intended, it could increase uptake of benefits among those who need them most—older adults living alone, those with disabilities, people in rural areas, and non-native English speakers. That would reduce financial hardship, support independent living at home, and lower pressure on NHS and social care budgets by helping people stay healthier longer. The approach is novel because it requires no digital skills from the user, just a phone call.

View original technical description
Kinly is a UK-based age tech SME led by Arthur Wakeley (project lead), James Blackburn (technical lead/back-end developer), Harry Franks (product owner) and Theodore D Cosco (scientific lead). The UK's 12.5M over-65s (19M by 2050) account for 40% of NHS budgets. With 3.3M living alone and 5.8M unable to access the internet, complex forms prevent many of those eligible for Attendance Allowance (3.4M) and Pension Credits (880K) from applying for support. With many benefits and services available, a solution that helps older people overcome the barrier of complex forms would alleviate financial hardships, promote independent living at home and decrease NHS and social care demands. To this end, Kinly is developing a support service for over-65s that rapidly completes complex forms via phone-based superhuman agents leveraging powerful AI/technical capabilities. It will benefit those over-65s in need, including 45% with disabilities (DWP,2024), 2.3M without internet (a luxury for low-income pensioners), 5.8M with limited computer/internet literacy (Age UK,2024), unsupported rural communities and minority ethnic with non-native English speakers. Kinly will be the first to complete complex forms using one phone conversation (no apps or in-person visits required), with rapid turnaround and quality control.

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