This chapter presents two case studies where the dominant narrative was subverted, one by citizen participants and one by researchers. Subversion, as a questioning and challenging stance, in the context of co-creation supports the discovery of new pathways for healthy behaviours even in modest projects. We also illustrate how emotion-led and interest-based design is used to increase adoption by end-users. Here we explore the development of an active ageing portal for a local council and the use of ‘Kira’ the robot to promote social interaction between older adults living with dementia.