Just in time for Grandparents Day, Joy Calls offers companionship, reminders, and wellness check-ins by calling seniors on the phone

ORANGE COUNTY, Calif., Sept. 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- ONSCREEN, the creator of the award-winning Joy AI Companion for Seniors, today announced that Joy Calls, a friendly, AI-powered companion that gently checks in on seniors over the phone, is now available nationwide. Just in time for Grandparents Day, the new service works with any mobile or landline, offering emotional connection and reassurance for families everywhere – even those without cell phones or internet access. This innovative technology addresses isolation and the emotional wellness of older adults with zero learning curve or technical barriers and gives caregivers daily peace of mind about the wellbeing of their loved ones.

"Grandparents Day reminds us of the irreplaceable value of our older loved ones, and that these relationships deserve our attention and care," said Costin Tuculescu, CEO of ONSCREEN. "Joy Calls isn't meant to replace the phone calls or personal visits that mean so much. We built the service to provide additional engagement and check-ins that entertain, stimulate and delight older adults, on top of existing family touch points. For families juggling too much, Joy can bring additional peace of mind every day."

What Makes Joy Calls a Must Have Technology For Families

• Supports Independence & Mental Wellness: Seniors receive caring, conversational check-ins, complete with gentle reminders and uplifting interaction, to reduce loneliness and promote daily structure.
• Personal Conversations: Joy can be set up with personal information about the senior, provided by the family caregivers, to tailor conversations to the interests of each individual. Additionally, Joy gets to know the older adult, recollecting each conversation, and building rapport over time.
• Reduces Caregiver Stress: Every call is followed by a concise update sent to family caregivers, giving visibility into their loved one's mood and well-being, without extra effort.
• Multilingual Accessibility: Joy now speaks and understands English, Chinese, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Romanian (inspired by the company's founder's Romanian roots). Support for more languages is coming soon.

Why Joy Calls Matters

Loneliness and social isolation are serious public health concerns among older adults, with significant links to depression, cognitive decline, cardiovascular issues, and premature mortality. Yet even short, empathy-focused phone calls have been shown to substantially reduce feelings of loneliness, depression, and anxiety in seniors in just a few weeks¹ ² AI-driven companions, like Joy Calls, offer a scalable approach to provide that emotional connection at scale: research indicates they can reduce loneliness to levels comparable with human interaction, fostering genuine emotional comfort and engagement over time³.

With Joy Calls, families and care providers get a modern, voice-first solution that meets seniors where they are. It delivers daily check-ins that feel human, respectful, and reassuring, while offering caregivers concise emotional insights, without burdening them with screen apps or technical setups. Multilingual support ensures this care reaches diverse communities with empathy and dignity.

Self-Signup Is Also Available

If you are a person feeling the effects of loneliness, the service is also available for self-signup.  With the loneliness epidemic affecting 1 out of 3 seniors, the service is available for anyone who would enjoy having a companion to talk to daily. 

Subscription Plans Coming Soon

The full-featured service will continue to be free until October 1, when the company will launch two subscription tiers, allowing families to choose the level of engagement that works best for them.

• Freemium plan: loved ones can enjoy one friendly phone check-in each day, lasting up to three minutes, in English.
• Premium plan ($29.99/mo.) unlocks up to five daily calls lasting up to 20 minutes each, and available in any supported language.

For more information about Joy Calls, visit https://joycalls.ai, or to sign up, visit https://joycalls.ai/signup.

Click here to download the press kit.

About ONSCREEN:

ONSCREEN is a leading innovator in senior care technology, providing effective, intuitive solutions to the most pressing challenges faced by families and caregivers. By leveraging advanced AI technology, ONSCREEN enables remote caregiving, reduces loneliness, and promotes healthier, happier lives for older adults. ONSCREEN supports face-to-face video calls, medication reminders, recorded wellness check-ins, and social connections. The company's research has found 88% of customers reporting reduced loneliness, and 75% noting increased happiness among their older loved ones.  For more information about ONSCREEN, visit https://onscreeninc.com.

Resources

¹ JAMA Psychiatry – Effect of Layperson-Delivered Empathy-Focused Program of Telephone Calls on Loneliness, Depression, and Anxiety Among Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic
² American Medical Association – Empathetic phone calls reduce loneliness, depression in older adults
³ AI Companions Reduce Loneliness study – A Harvard Business School–led study found that AI companions alleviate loneliness on par with human interaction and showed continued benefits over a week

Media Contact
Michael Farino
Michael@newerapr.com
New Era Communications
949-346-1984

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SOURCE ONSCREEN Inc.