Tom Stevens

Founder & CEO, Tombot · 1 appearance on the record.

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Tom Stevens founded Tombot in 2017 to create realistic robotic emotional-support animals, inspired by his mother's Alzheimer's diagnosis. A veteran tech executive, he partnered with Jim Henson's Creature Shop to build interactive companion robots that soothe individuals facing dementia and cognitive decline.

9statements → 4claims → 4claims resolved → 25%fully supported → 3.89/5average certainty → 1.56/5average debate potential →

1 supported 1 partly supported 2 contradicted how the 4 claims stand · each chip opens the sources

4 assertions · 1 insight · 4 disclosures · every statement was checked. The predictions and assertions are the 4 claims: statements the public record can support or contradict. 4 are resolved. Everything else (opinions, insights, what ifs, disclosures) can never be settled by the record, so it carries no assessment.

The record, in short

What the tape says about how Tom argues and how the claims held up. Everything they said, and everything said about them, is in the tabs below.

Their most notable supported claim

Assertion Supported

Domesticated dogs evolved unique eye musculature entirely absent in wild wolves

“Domesticated dogs have unique musculature on their inner part of their eyes that allows them to raise their inner eyebrows and give you those, you know, puppy dog look, you know, please take care of me. It turns out we've been human. Wild wolves can't do that.”

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 32:02 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

Their most notable contradicted claim

Assertion Contradicted

Reaching age 85 carries a 50% likelihood of developing Alzheimer's

“The sad facts are that once we get to 85, we're about fifty-fifty likely to have Alzheimer's.”

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 13:33 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

How they sound: not measured why? →

We measure speaking style by listening to the audio itself, and a fair number needs at least 2,000 words from one person on tape we have measured. There is too little of Tom Stevens on measured tape to publish a rate. This says nothing about how they speak.

What they said9 Episodes1

Everything Tom Stevens said on We Live to Build that made the record, most notable first. Filter by type, assessment or year in the ledger →

Assertion Contradicted

Reaching age 85 carries a 50% likelihood of developing Alzheimer's

“The sad facts are that once we get to 85, we're about fifty-fifty likely to have Alzheimer's.”

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 13:33 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

Assertion Contradicted

CMS generally bars the use of psychotropics in US long-term care

“Today these psychotropics as a class of medications are not permitted for use in long-term care facilities here in the U S not permitted by the centers for Medicare and Medicaid services under most circumstances.”

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 21:31 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

Disclosure

Tombot is designed to replace antidepressants and opioids in elderly patients

“Looking for things that can replace an antidepressant. Something that can replace a an opioid type of medication. Is really the mission that Tombot is on and the void that we felt is that children or loved ones, other loved ones or pets are frequently what peo…”

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 24:29 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

Assertion Partly supported

Shelter dog adoption speed directly correlates with inner eyebrow movement

“There was a study done out of the UK that wanted to understand why certain dogs in shelters were adopted before others, and they looked at variables such as size, color, breed, disposition. None of that seemed to matter. What mattered was how well a particular…”

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 32:53 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

Disclosure

Tombot partners with Cleveland Clinic to monitor sundowning syndrome in patients

“Our first model will monitor for sundowning syndrome. Sundowning is one of the most common of the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia, and we're working with Cleveland Clinic to develop the user interface so at a glance they can see how changes i…”

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 38:53 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

Insight

Grandchildren care for aging relatives more effectively than adult children

“And sometimes it takes a generation skip someone who's far enough away from that emotional tangle of that parent-child relationship to really see what's needed and be able to act effectively.”

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 11:55 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

Disclosure

Tombot plans to release a robotic companion cat in the future

“Lots of people are rooting for us to come out with a cat, and we will at some point”

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 31:17 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

Assertion Supported

Domesticated dogs evolved unique eye musculature entirely absent in wild wolves

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 32:02 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

Disclosure

Dementia patients prefer realistic movements and authentic animal behaviors in robots

“When we studied seniors with dementia there were three major hypotheses that we confirmed in our testing. One is they like things that move over things that don't move. So the reason why they prefer a robotic dog to a stuffed animal or a human baby doll. Secon…”

Tom Stevens Dec 26, 2023 ▶ 37:02 Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them

Appearances (1)

Episode	Date	Speaking time
Dogs Evolved Unique Eye Muscles Just to Make You Care for Them	Dec 26, 2023	28m

Tom Stevens

The record, in short

Their most notable supported claim

Their most notable contradicted claim

How they sound: not measured why? →

Appearances (1)

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