Successful robot trial of smart eldercare

Prose and cons

Not every robot has been a hit. Han said a life-size humanoid robot modeled on the Song Dynasty (960-1279) poet Su Dongpo, also known as Su Shi — which could recite verse and banter about food — cost over 600,000 yuan but was pulled from the floor after just days because almost no one used it.

"Seniors would try it once, but it didn't address any real need," Han said. "What they care about is health, rehabilitation, and daily living."

One elderly visitor, an 80-year-old man surnamed Zhuang who came to the station with his grandson, said he was thrilled by the Su Dongpo robot before it was removed.

"I asked it, 'How do you make Dongpo pork?' and it told me immediately," he said. "Then it composed a poem with me. That kind of interaction makes you feel like the technology is really for us."

He said he had brought his grandson to the station specifically to see the robots. "Things are developing so fast," he said. "I want the younger generation to see what's possible."

What many seniors do want, according to Zhen Zishuo, a rehabilitation specialist from resident tech firm Beijing AI-robotics, is help with the mundane tasks of aging. His company supplies the exoskeleton suits.

After an 80-year-old visitor pointed out the stair-climbing problem, Zhen's team accelerated work on a new mode.

"That feedback came directly from an elder using our device in this station," Zhen said. "His primary need wasn't walking on flat ground — it was going up and down stairs. We didn't realize how urgent that was until we heard it here."

Testing ground

The station has become a live laboratory where robotics companies can observe how older users interact with their products. Zhen said his company stations a full-time rehabilitation therapist on-site to help seniors try the equipment and collect feedback.

"Some of these devices are complex, and seniors need someone to show them how to put them on and adjust the settings," he said. "But once they try it, many of them want to buy one. We've had several customized orders already."

Li Minglian, a representative from Robot Mall — which curates and supplies machines from robotics firms — said the station allows manufacturers to move beyond theoretical design.

"R&D people often sit in labs and guess what old people need," she said. "Here, they can watch an 80-year-old try to put on an exoskeleton and see exactly where the design fails. You can't get that feedback any other way."

Li said the most requested robot, the one that involves close contact with its owner, has not yet been widely deployed.

"That's the holy grail," she said. "But the technology for physical assistance is the most cautious area of development, especially when it's for the elderly. We will not put an unsafe product on the market."

China's population is aging faster than almost any major economy. As of the end of 2025, the number of people aged 60 and above reached 323.38 million, or about 23 percent of the total population, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The Ministry of Civil Affairs has said that roughly 35 million of those elderly individuals have disabilities requiring long-term care — a figure that underscores the growing strain on the country's family-based care system and fuels demand for robotic alternatives.