Why I built Recall Aid
I’m Truth Mjumbe. I built Recall Aid because I have epilepsy. I lose pieces of days and have trouble pulling them back, and I noticed an old friend could say a few words and a whole season would come flooding back. I wanted to know why, and I wanted a way to do it on purpose.
My father, Rev. Lukata Mjumbe, leads the Alabama African-American Civil Rights Heritage Sites Consortium and has spent his life preserving Black civil rights stories. I grew up around the work of holding onto stories the country tried to lose.
Older Black Americans are about twice as likely to face Alzheimer’s or another dementia (Alzheimer’s Association 2024). The work matters most where memory matters most.
The current research is figuring out which words spark recall and which region of the brain each cue reaches. Voice cues drawn from a person’s own past, region-matched to the memory we’re trying to bring back. No complicated setup. No technical skills required. Just a conversation.
Recall Aid uses empathetic AI to turn spoken memories into an AI Book, in their own voice, with cues drawn from their own words.
We believe AI should support care, not replace it. We use it only where it adds meaningful value for families, and we approach that work with transparency, respect, and a real sense of responsibility.
