PRESS RELEASE Barcelona, October 30, 2025

ACE ALZHEIMER CENTER BARCELONA LAUNCHES A GROUNDBREAKING STUDY USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TO PERSONALIZE CARE FOR PEOPLE WITH COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT

• The center is leading the pilot phase of the European COMFORTage project in Catalonia, which uses AI and biomarkers to tailor cognitive stimulation therapies for the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. • Ace Alzheimer Center is one of two centers in Spain applying this technology, offering 100 people free access to an innovative digital treatment • The study, part of a healthy aging program, aims to advance toward more predictive and personalized medicine for dementia. Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona is actively participating in COMFORTage, a European project funded by the Horizon Europe program, which aims to develop personalized models for the prevention and treatment of dementia and frailty through the use of artificial intelligence, biomarkers, and digital technologies. Coordinated by the University of Piraeus (Greece) and involving 39 institutions from 13 countries, COMFORTage seeks to establish a pan-European framework to offer person-centered prevention and monitoring solutions, integrating clinical, genetic, neuropsychological, and digital information. In this context, Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona is leading one of the consortium’s 13 clinical pilots, focused on evaluating digital cognitive stimulation interventions in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and mild dementia. The organization is also one of two centers in Spain testing this innovative technology, developed within the framework of the project, thereby positioning itself as a national leader in AI research applied to dementia. The study, which will include 100 participants aged 60 to 85 and involve a two-year follow-up, will measure changes in cognitive performance as its primary outcome using the NBACE battery, a tool developed by the Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona that assesses functions such as memory, attention, language, visuospatial abilities, and executive functions. Participants will take part in the program completely free of charge, allowing them to access high-cost treatment within the framework of the project, which will also assess the impact of the interventions on patients’ physical, psychological, and functional well-being. To this end, participants will be divided into two groups: one that performs digital cognitive stimulation activities during the first year, and another that follows standard care protocols. Throughout the two-year follow-up period, clinical, neuropsychological, genetic, neuroimaging, and language data will be collected, as well as biomarkers from plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). This multidimensional approach will enable an analysis of how digital and personalized interventions can slow cognitive decline, improve patients’ quality of life, and promote healthy aging. “COMFORTage allows us to integrate artificial intelligence into daily clinical practice, offering dynamic monitoring tailored to each individual. The goal is to optimize treatment, improve quality of life, and move toward truly personalized medicine,” says Sergi Valero, deputy scientific director of Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona. As part of COMFORTage, Ace uses innovative interactive technology tools that facilitate both intervention and remote patient monitoring. These include Healthentia, a platform that enables real-time monitoring of clinical and well-being data; Eligence, a personalized cognitive stimulation app that tailors exercises to the user’s abilities; Language Games, which assesses linguistic functions through interactive tasks; and PUNTO Health, an app that analyzes spontaneous speech as a digital biomarker of cognitive status. All this data is integrated into the project’s AI-based virtual platform, which generates so-called Digital Twins: virtual replicas of each patient that are continuously updated with new clinical information. These models enable the simulation of disease progression and the predictive adjustment of treatments, paving the way for precision medicine in Alzheimer’s disease. “With more than one million people affected by dementia in Spain, and an increasing incidence due to the aging population, research into early diagnosis and personalized treatments is becoming essential. With COMFORTage, we are taking another step toward truly personalized care. Thanks to digital twins, we can predict cognitive changes and adapt therapies before significant deterioration occurs,” adds Valero. In addition to leading the clinical pilot, Ace contributes its biobank and clinical database to the consortium, which include thousands of patient records with biomarkers, neuroimaging, genetics, and neuropsychological assessments. This information will enable the training and validation of the project’s artificial intelligence algorithms, strengthening the predictive capacity of the models on a European scale.

Alzheimer Center Barcelona, a pioneering model in the field of Alzheimer’s disease

Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona, an innovative organization and a leader in Spain, was founded in 1995 with the goal of meeting the growing demand for the diagnosis and treatment of people with cognitive impairment and dementia, particularly Alzheimer’s. It offers personalized care and comprehensive support to patients and their families through a telemedicine-based care model that ensures care and support for all people with Alzheimer’s and their families from anywhere in the country. Each year, its Diagnostic Unit serves nearly 9,000 people, of whom more than 4,000 have dementia (3,000 of them with Alzheimer’s). Early-stage diagnosis of dementia is a priority for Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona, which is why it promotes free memory screenings, including online assessments via FACEmemory®. Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona is considered a leading international center for research, particularly in clinical, neuropsychological, social, and basic research. Among other research activities, Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona participates in numerous global clinical trials covering all stages of the disease. As a result, it has led two research projects funded by the European Union on Alzheimer’s genetics (ADAPTED) and on models of active patient participation (MOPEAD). For more information Marta Martín: marta.martin.ext@weareboth.com / 637 75 50 06 Isabel Rodríguez: irodriguez@fundacioace.org / 93 444 73 18 www.fundacioace.org