Sociologist of technology and ageing
Sydney Centre for Healthy Societies

Dr Barbara Barbosa Neves (PhD, FRSA, FHEA) is an award-winning sociologist of technology and ageing. She is an Associate Professor, ARC Future Fellow, and Horizon Fellow at the Sydney Centre for Healthy Societies, University of Sydney. She is an expert on loneliness and digital inequalities in later life. Her research examines how emerging technologies, like AI and social robotics, can support rather than exclude older people, particularly those living with chronic illness, frailty, or complex care needs. This work has informed technology design and policy across the world, and has been cited by the UN, OECD, WHO, and EU. She has secured over $7 million in funding and works with community organisations, government, and industry to develop inclusive, evidence-based initiatives that uphold dignity and rights in later life. Barbara currently leads a national evaluation, commissioned by the Australian Government, of an aged care program addressing loneliness and social isolation.