ELARA Lab
ELARA's First Year: Building Research Through Relationships
Park looks back on student-led projects, community robot demonstrations, and international exchanges, and welcomes new collaborators.
Researcher. Designer. Community collaborator.
Chorong ParkPh.D.
Technology that supports
people on their terms.
I turn intimidating technology into everyday support for aging, caregiving, and healthy living. My research brings human-centered design to AI, robotics, and digital health, with autonomy, relationships, and joy at the heart of the work.
Assistant Professor & Presidential Frontier Faculty
University of Houston
About me
From lived experience
to thoughtful design.
I am an applied, community-engaged researcher at the Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design. I work alongside older adults, people with disabilities, caregivers, and community partners to understand not just whether technology works, but whether it belongs in the lives of the people it is meant to support.
My background connects visual arts, UX design, and gerontology. I earned my Ph.D. in Technology, with a minor in Gerontology, and my M.S. in UX Design at Purdue University, following a B.A. in Visual Arts at the University of Illinois.
More than 500 hours of community technology support with older adults helped shape the questions I ask today: Who gets to decide what support looks like? How can design build confidence instead of dependence? And how can emerging technologies make room for delight?
University profileMy current research
Human agency is the through line.
I connect participatory design, behavioral science, and responsible AI to study how technology can fit everyday life.
Trustworthy AI & companion robots
How can embodied AI respect changing privacy boundaries, support informed choices, and strengthen rather than replace human relationships?
Research on robot privacyJoy, accessibility & aging
How can AI, AR/VR, and everyday interfaces build on older adults' strengths, challenge technological ageism, and invite learning and play?
Research on emotional experienceConnected care & everyday adoption
How can digital health and care services help people navigate complex decisions while remaining accessible, useful, and sustainable in homes and communities?
See the design foundationsIndustry experience & collaborations
Design practice informs
the questions I ask.
My earlier UX projects connect to today's research through a shared concern: helping people feel capable, connected, and in control.
Microsoft Care Team / Team lead
Creating togetherness in family care
I co-led a sponsored team and designed the Wish Board concept, bringing interviews with caregivers and care recipients into a Microsoft Teams experience for sharing wishes and planning family moments.
Connection to my research: Care should make space for a person's own goals and relationships, not only tasks and monitoring.
Read the full case study
Microsoft / Lead Project Owner
Making the next step easier to see
I led research, design sprints, prototyping, and testing for a Microsoft Teams integration concept to help liberal arts students connect their skills and interests with career opportunities.
Connection to my research: Supporting agency means making options understandable, while leaving meaningful decisions with the person.
Read the full case studyThese are portfolio design concepts and industry-academic projects, not claims of shipped products or current company endorsements. Project roles and employment experience are distinguished below.
View all projects- MicrosoftSponsored UX projects
- Family caregiving and career development in Microsoft Teams.
- P&GLead Project Owner
- Led an eight-designer team exploring product discovery and shopping tools on Amazon.
- DolbyLead Project Owner
- Led a seven-designer team exploring community and connection in remote work.
- PepsiCoLead Project Owner
- Led a seven-designer team exploring digital experiences around physical products.
- AdventHealth & UEGroupIndustry-academic collaboration
- A Medicare information prototype focused on understandable choices and accessible care navigation.
- CernerIndustry-academic collaboration
- Patient and provider research to support more personal telemedicine experiences.
- Beijing Normal University & PurdueLead Project Owner / Academic collaboration
- Led team discussions, UX research, and design exploration for semi-autonomous vehicles through a cross-cultural university collaboration.
- PathAIProduct Design Intern
- Worked with the product design team, as documented in my portfolio biography.
From healthcare UX to autonomy-preserving AI
Projects with AdventHealth, UEGroup, and Cerner explored care navigation and patient-provider connection. Those design challenges connect to my current focus on accessible support, trust, and adoption beyond the hospital. Work with P&G, Dolby, and PepsiCo adds experience in understanding everyday choices, social connection, and engagement.
The lab I lead
ELARA Lab
My research comes to life through ELARA: a collaborative home for autonomy-preserving embodied AI, participatory research, and design for aging and care.
Find my work on Google Scholar
From the lab & beyond
News & stories
Research and perspectives on technology, aging, and human agency.
Lab stories
ELARA Lab
Designing Care Robots With Older Adults, Not Just for Them
A shared feature highlights the community input shaping ELARA's approach to companion robots.
ELARA Lab
KHOU 11 Visits ELARA, With Older Adults at the Center
A community-center interview highlighted why listening to people's reactions is part of robot design, not just outreach.
ELARA Lab
What Comes After a Promising Digital Health Idea?
Coaching hypertension teams in Zurich brought evidence, feedback, and practical delivery into the same design conversation.
ELARA Lab
Chorong Park and Fellow Speakers Explore Care Robotics at EMBRACE 2026
The RO-MAN workshop connected Park's work on trust with cross-cultural robot teleoperation, emotionally responsive companions, and a shared discussion about care.
ELARA Lab
Connecting Human Behavior and Social Robotics at ETH Zurich
An ETH Zurich exchange connected Park's work on aging and robot interaction with perspectives from neuroscience and behavior.
ELARA Lab
At SKKU, Designing Trust Alongside AI Intelligence
Park's July talk explored the responsibility that comes with making AI agents socially and emotionally engaging.
ELARA Lab
In Seoul, a Conversation About Research That Keeps Listening
Park's summer research visit put lasting relationships with older adults at the center of AI and robotics design.
ELARA Lab
What Makes Digital Coaching Meaningful in Everyday Life?
At CDHI, Park connected AI and digital coaching with trust, dignity, and the realities of aging.
ELARA Lab
Helping Digital Health Ideas Find a Path Into Care
Park joined the UMZH summer school's hypertension challenge with a focus on the practical questions beyond a promising concept.
ELARA Lab
From Robot Play to AI Literacy at RoboCup 2026
A planned RoboCup presentation explores robot play as an invitation to understand AI, ask questions, and stay in control.
ELARA Lab
A Houston Seminar Looks Beyond What AI Can Do
Park's planned Computer Science talk asks what makes AI, robots, and immersive technologies usable and trustworthy in everyday life.
ELARA Lab
What Park Brought Home From CHI 2026
Alongside an Honorable Mention, the Barcelona conference brought fresh questions about making robots accessible, enjoyable, and useful over time.
ELARA Lab
Putting People in Control of Adaptive Robot Autonomy
Park's InterAI message: robots should adapt as people change, but people should have a say in how that happens.
ELARA Lab
ELARA's First Recruitment Table Starts New Conversations
An early lab milestone brought students and professionals together around research on technology and aging.
ELARA Lab
At Robotics Day, the Question Is Who a Robot Helps
Purdue demonstrations prompted Park to think about purpose, accessibility, and human connection alongside technical possibility.
ELARA Lab
Robot Privacy Research Earns CHI 2026 Honorable Mention
An award-recognized study asks a practical question: what happens when someone's privacy preferences change after the first click?
ELARA Lab
Helping Caregivers Use AI Without Handing Over Judgment
A hands-on Carebom session focused on everyday communication, time to practice, and knowing when to check an AI response.
ELARA Lab
What Makes a Companion Robot Feel Approachable?
At ICCR 2025 in Kyoto, Park explored how familiar, friendly interactions could shape older adults' experiences with robots.
ELARA Lab
UH Faculty Feature Highlights Design for Aging
A UH faculty profile looks at the people and design questions behind Park's work on aging and interactive technology.
ELARA Lab
Bringing Joy Into Technology Learning for Older Adults
An IDSA conversation puts enjoyment, everyday routines, and collaboration at the heart of technology learning for older adults.
ELARA Lab
Chorong Park Joins the University of Houston
Park brings a people-first approach to technology, aging, and design to her new faculty role in Houston.
LinkedIn updates
Posts and perspectives from Chorong Park.
In the news
InnovationMap
Houston lab explores how AI bots can help the elderly (opens in a new tab)
InnovationMap covers ELARA's work on robot companions, with attention to privacy, participation, and independent living.
Read articleUniversity of Houston
New AI-Powered Robots Could Combat Loneliness Among Older Adults (opens in a new tab)
University of Houston highlights how Chorong Park and ELARA involve older adults in shaping AI and robotics around dignity, trust, and human connection.
Read articlePurdue Polytechnic
Ph.D. student's dissertation aims to bring autonomy, competence, joy to older adults using technology (opens in a new tab)
Purdue profiles Park's community-engaged doctoral research into inclusive VR, AR, AI, and robotic companions for older adults.
Read article