Norie Assist · Romandie · May 2026

A digital companion for Switzerland's 592,000 invisible caregivers.

An AI companion for caregivers. It adapts to the urgency of each situation and tracks mood to prevent burnout. Grounded in the official resources of every Romandie canton — the right service at the right moment.

Try the prototype → See the problem ↓
Federally documented evidence base Functional prototype, real Claude API Vaud-intent · December 2026
592'000
informal caregivers in Switzerland
OFSP · 2018
CHF 3.7B
annual unpaid care
OFSP
49%
reach clinical caregiver burden
OFSP
53%
cannot find adequate relief
OFSP
01 · The problem

Even motivated caregivers fail at every step.

53% of Swiss caregivers cannot find adequate relief. This is not one failure — it is five compounding barriers.

01
Don't self-identify as caregivers
+

Most caregivers don't recognise themselves as caregivers until a crisis — a fall, a hospital discharge, a diagnosis. By the time they recognise themselves, they are already exhausted, depressed, or in physical decline. The system has no way to reach them in the prevention window.Source — OFSP / Careum 2018

02
Shame collapses demand
+

One in three caregivers find it shameful to seek help. Stigma collapses demand at the moment caregivers might otherwise reach out. Word of mouth and crisis triggers are the only reliable entry points — and both arrive too late.Source — OFSP

03
Searching online leads nowhere clear
+

An online search for caregiver help returns 10+ Swiss sites — Pro Senectute, Pro Aidants Suisse, Espace Proches, Croix-Rouge, Alzheimer Suisse, cantonal services — and none answers clearly for this situation. Without prior knowledge, it's impossible to know which to call first. Caregivers spend hours weekly without making progress.Source — direct observation + Norie Digital Maturity audit

04
When caregivers finally have time to look, everything is closed
+

Caregivers rarely have free time mid-day. Evenings, weekends, early mornings — that's when they search. But Swiss services run business hours. Even Espace Proches, Vaud's reference service, has no contact form, no callback, no chat. At 10pm on a Sunday, you read the site and leave — having gained nothing.Source — Norie UX audit

05
Structural under-capacity, widening by demographics
+

Vaud's dedicated psychological caregiver support operates from 4 regional centres for ~140'000 caregivers — all business hours, one of which serves only Thursdays. And the gap widens mechanically: the 80+ population doubles to 1.11M by 2050 while the working-age population shrinks. You cannot hire your way out of this.Source — Vaud Service Directory + OFS demographic projections

02 · The caregiver journey

Norie Assist works alongside social workers, not instead of them.

Think of Norie Assist as a digital intern to the social worker — handling the trivial, repetitive, 24/7 work so the human professionals can focus on what only they can do.

Norie Assist · the digital intern
Always on · every stage · every canton
Trivial, repetitive, 24/7. Zero marginal cost per caregiver. Scales with the demographic curve.
Information lookup Document triage Eligibility checks · API · PC · AVS 24/7 emotional check-in Resource navigation Journey positioning Reminders & follow-up
surfaces decision moments with full context
03 · The solution

A Swiss caregiver navigator with an AI front-end.

Built, working, tested informally. The AI is the access layer; the substance is 18 months of upstream research baked into every interaction.

  • Three AI modes calibrated to caregiver state IMMÉDIAT for acute crisis · GUIDÉ for active problem-solving · PLANIFICATION for longer-term decisions. Selected via a mood check-in at session start.
  • Canton-aware Swiss resources Verified subsidies, Spitex contacts, Pro Senectute, AVS bonifications. Six cantons — VD · GE · VS · NE · FR · JU.
  • Document triage Paste or upload Swiss administrative documents. Verified providers flagged ✓ · unverified flagged ⚠. The system explains what each requires.
  • OFSP 6-stage journey tagging Every interaction silently positioned on the official Swiss caregiver lifecycle. Enables longitudinal support and clinical handoff.
  • Evidence-based System prompt embeds OFSP 2020, BASS, NICE NG97, Brodaty 2009. Every claim cites a source.
Norie Assist · live demo
Comment vous sentez-vous ce soir ?
😊
🙂
😐
😞
😢
Mode · IMMÉDIAT
Je suis là. Respirez. Dites-moi en une phrase ce qui s'est passé ce soir.
— NORIE_CARD
📞 0848 822 822 — AVASAD relève d'urgence (Vaud)
🏥 Réévaluation CMS — demande immédiate
💰 Vérifier API moyen — CHF 630/mois
Try the prototype → Or book a 30-min call →

The interactive prototype runs entirely in your browser. For a personalised walkthrough — 30 minutes with Minh, fondateur.

04 · The moat

Three layers, each removing a barrier.

AI alone is not defensible. The moat is that each Norie Assist layer eliminates a specific structural barrier — and the layers compound over time.

Layer 1
Individual
Built · v2 live

AI companion meeting caregivers where they are. Three modes, canton-aware resources, document triage, OFSP staging. 24/7. Zero marginal cost per caregiver.

Removes barriers — 03 · 04 · 05
→
Layer 2
Ecosystem
Mapping in progress

A single navigation layer over Switzerland's fragmented caregiver-support landscape. Routes each caregiver to the right foundation, NGO, or community initiative for their canton and stage. Amplifier of existing initiatives, not a competitor.

Removes barrier — 03 at system level
→
Layer 3
Network
Future · density-dependent

As regional user density grows, mutualisation unlocks — shared meals across nearby families, pooled respite, neighbourhood care exchanges. Peer recognition normalises being a caregiver in a community where others already are.

Removes barrier — 01 at community level
→
05 · About Norie

The work behind Norie Assist.

Norie is first and foremost an independent research project, carried out solo from Romandie. At the intersection of housing, elderly care, childcare, and renovation in Switzerland. Norie Assist is its first user-facing product, after 18 months of research.

Minh Pham
Project initiator · Romandie

Systems architect, bilingual French / English. Background in product, research, policy analysis. This is solo work — not a team, not an institute — driven by the conviction that AI can amplify the work of the professionals who support caregivers, not replace them.

Applying to EPFL Human Health by Design 2026 — for the clinical validation that turns a project into a tested product.

17
International case studies — intergenerational care + housing
11
Business models with concept notes + prioritization matrix
8
Proches Aidants research papers — landscape, journey, CAC
20
Swiss institutional actors mapped in stakeholder analysis
26
Cantons in vulnerability matrix — 5 mega-trends scored
v2
Norie Assist functional prototype — in conversation in 30s
Get in touch

Caregivers are the missing infrastructure of Swiss healthcare.

Norie Assist is the digital layer they have been waiting for. If you are a caregiver, a clinical partner, a foundation, or a researcher — we would like to talk.

Or write directly to hello@norie.ch

01 Individual layer · Built · v2 live

A companion, at any hour, in every canton.

Caregivers don't follow a 9-to-5 schedule. 24/7, across 6 Romandie cantons, with detailed knowledge of the Swiss system (API, PC, AVS bonification, cantonal Spitex) — this is the layer only an AI can truly inhabit.

The product · in action
🙂 Mode · PLANNING Norie Assist
Hello. Before anything, two questions to point you in the right direction — does your father live alone, and are you in the same canton?
He lives alone in Lausanne, I'm 20 min away by car.
📚 Consulting · OFSP F5 · Code of obligations · AVASAD
Got it — living alone + distance < 30 km. Here are 3 little-known rights to activate for you right now:
— Norie · Action card
💰 AVS caregiver bonification — 3× minimum pension credited per year of care OFSP F5
📋 Short caregiver leave — 3 d/event, employer-paid CO 329h
🏥 Free CMS assessment — triggers cantonal aid AVASAD

A real conversation: Norie asks the right questions before answering, integrates federal and cantonal sources, and personalises to your situation. Available 24/7 across 6 Romandie cantons.

Roadmap · 2026
✓ May 2026 v2 functional prototype · three AI modes, canton-aware resources, document triage, OFSP staging. Live at norie.ch/try.
● June 2026 v2.1 — Instrumentation · mood logging, session length, return rate, time-to-resolution. Enables clinical measurement.
○ Sept 2026 v3 — H4 pilot · clinical validation with 25 caregivers recruited via hospital partners. Pre/post measurement of Zarit Burden Interview.
○ Dec 2026 v3.1 — Post-pilot · iteration based on clinical learnings. Data ready for publication and partnership round.
The vision · concrete

At 11pm on a Sunday, Marie types "My mother has fallen." In 4 seconds she gets the right numbers for the Vaud canton, the script to use with CMS tomorrow morning, and the attention needed for the chest pain she just mentioned.

02 Ecosystem layer · Mapping in progress

The single layer above a fragmented landscape.

Switzerland has dozens of caregiver-support initiatives — Pro Senectute, Espace Proches, Croix-Rouge, AVASAD, Alzheimer Suisse, communal services. All excellent, all invisible to each other. Norie doesn't replace anyone — it routes each caregiver to the right initiative at the right moment.

The ecosystem · 6 actor families · MECE
Norie routes across the whole landscape
↓
Public orientation & info
Associations · public services
  • Pro Aidants Suisse
  • Espace Proches
  • Pro Senectute
  • Cantonal info centres
Care & respite
Public · associative · private
  • Spitex / AVASAD (public)
  • Croix-Rouge respite
  • Private Spitex
  • Day-care centres
Disease-specific
Dedicated associations
  • Alzheimer Suisse
  • Parkinson Suisse
  • Pro Infirmis
  • Pathology-specific assoc.
Community & solidarity
Local · faith · volunteering
  • Caritas
  • Communal services
  • Parishes
  • Neighbourhood assoc.
Private services
Commercial companies
  • Uber Eats · Smood (meals)
  • Mobility · taxis (transport)
  • Coop / Migros delivery
  • Home pharmacies
Foundations
Fund the ecosystem
  • Age-Stiftung
  • Paul Schiller Stiftung
  • Leenaards · Walder
  • Local foundations

For the same need — a meal, a ride, a presence — a caregiver may be routed to an association (Croix-Rouge), a communal initiative, or a private service (Uber Eats, Mobility). Norie knows the whole landscape: associations, public services, private companies, and the foundations that fund it. Named entries are identified organisations; ··· dashed entries are categories we know exist but haven't yet mapped to specific organisations.

Roadmap · 2026-2027
● Q3 2026 Ecosystem mapping · structured inventory of Swiss initiatives (foundations, NGOs, communal services, parishes, associations) with their scope, criteria, and verified contacts.
○ Q4 2026 First routing agreements · 1-2 pilot partnerships with mutual feedback: we route pre-qualified caregivers, our partners tell us what works and what doesn't.
○ 2027 Active routing layer · Norie integrates orientation directly into the conversation. Measure of time saved for caregivers and quality of routing for partners.
○ 2027+ German-Switzerland extension · mapping and language adaptation. Norie becomes the national entry point to the ecosystem.
The vision · concrete

A caregiver consulting Norie gets the introduction to the initiative they actually need — Pro Senectute for administrative paperwork, Espace Proches for emotional support, AVASAD for respite. Without having to compare them themselves.

03 Network layer · Future · density-dependent

When neighbours discover they're caregivers too.

Once dozens of caregivers use Norie in the same region, their needs overlap — meals, transport, childcare, presence. Density unlocks mutualisation: three families in the same neighbourhood share what would cost a fortune individually. The network doesn't create solidarity; it makes it operational.

Map view · Lausanne · shared needs
Meals Respite Transport Presence Childcare

A view of Lausanne — each dot is an anonymous caregiver, coloured by their current need. When 2 or 3 families in the same neighbourhood share the same need, a circle marks a possible match — without revealing anyone's identity, just the opportunity to mutualise. OpenStreetMap.

Roadmap · 2027 and beyond
○ 2027 Regional density measurement · identification of the first caregiver clusters where mutualisation becomes operationally viable.
○ 2028 First mutualisation pilots · shared meal delivery, shared transport for medical appointments, evening presence exchanges.
○ 2029+ Generalised neighbourhood exchanges · dedicated mobile app for active communities. Replicable canton by canton.
The vision · concrete

Monday 6pm, three families in La Tour-de-Peilz discover they share the same meal-delivery person. Tuesday they discover they share daytime childcare for grandparents on Wednesdays. Norie doesn't create the connection — it reveals that the connection was already there.

Nórie