Madrid City Council pilots PALOMA, an AI calling system that detects unwanted loneliness in people over 75

Overview

Madrid City Council piloted PALOMA, which phones people over 75 who live alone and uses a natural-sounding synthetic voice to administer a short questionnaire designed by social services professionals, classifying risk levels and offering follow-up; flagged cases are reviewed by professional staff. The source reports 5,163 calls, 2,071 completed conversations and 646 people requesting municipal follow-up, of whom 602 were referred to social programmes and 236 accepted a home visit.

The challenge

Unwanted loneliness affects older adults over 75 who live alone in Madrid and can lead to isolation, declining health and loss of autonomy. Early detection is difficult because many do not seek help and traditional channels such as postal mail or in-person visits are not sufficient to identify those at risk.

The solution

PALOMA uses natural language processing technology to hold conversations with a natural-sounding synthetic voice and administer a short questionnaire designed by social services professionals. The AI analyses responses to detect signs of loneliness, classify risk levels and offer follow-up calls or information about municipal services. Cases flagged as relevant are always reviewed by professional staff.

Reported business value

In the pilot, PALOMA carried out 5,163 calls, completed 2,071 conversations and enabled 646 people to request municipal follow-up; 602 were referred to social programs and 236 accepted a home visit. The system identified 44 clear high-risk cases. These are pilot results reported by the city.