Technology empowers silver economy; digital elderly care faces broad opportunities
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BEIJING, Sept. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Driven by both policy guidance and market forces, China’s silver economy is rapidly developing, creating vast opportunities. The silver market has shown new progress, including sustained vitality of main entities, continued boom in key areas, the prominent role of consumption in driving investment, and accelerated advancement of industrial integration and regional coordination.
China’s silver economy is entering a new stage of development. A new development pattern is emerging – marked by consumption upgrades, technological empowerment, industry-finance integration, and regional coordination. The silver economy has evolved from a concept to action, becoming an important action in national strategies such as actively responding to population aging, expanding domestic demand, and achieving high-quality development.
With moderate growth in per capita consumption, the scale of China’s silver economy is expected to reach 19.1 trillion yuan ($2.68 trillion) by 2035, accounting for 27.8 percent of total consumption, according to the Fudan Institute on Aging.
In recent years, with the support of technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), the elderly care industry has become increasingly intelligent and digitalized, with smart elderly care emerging as a new growth track in the silver economy. As technological innovation continues to expand, application scenarios for smart elderly care are becoming increasingly diverse. Intelligent nursing robots, smart wearable devices, and personal health management systems are helping older adults better enjoy a smarter lifestyle.
Powered by modern technologies such as the internet, big data, and AI, smart elderly care models now provide seniors and institutions with real-time, efficient, and low-cost services. Looking ahead, the digital transformation and intelligent upgrading of the elderly care industry are expected to bring new growth points to economic development and give rise to new fields and new tracks.
According to the 55th Statistical Report on China’s Internet Development released by the China Internet Network Information Center, as of December 2024, internet users aged 50 and above accounted for 34.1 percent of the total, up from 32.5 percent a year earlier. The internet continues to penetrate deeper into middle-aged and elderly groups.
The silver generation has shown strong adaptability to the internet and enthusiasm for digital life. Their online habits are comparable to those of younger groups. Online shopping, web browsing, mobile payments, and video streaming have become daily routines, enriching their lifestyles with diverse experiences.
Since 2017, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has launched nationwide pilot projects for smart health and elderly care, focusing on building platforms, resource integration, database utilization, terminal convergence, and smart devices. Such pilots have spurred breakthroughs and accelerated the industry’s development.
Take healthcare as an example. China is strengthening digital and intelligent services in local healthcare, promoting telemedicine, and expanding online medical care. E-commerce platforms are also actively entering internet healthcare, offering innovative products that enrich elderly care financial services and provide seniors with integrated healthcare solutions.
With breakthroughs in computing power, algorithms, and AI, technology is penetrating the silver economy more deeply. The interaction between the silver economy and technology innovation has become a key arena of global competition. Meanwhile, global population aging and digital globalization may offer China a strategic opportunity to lead in this field.
To further promote the deep integration of technological and industrial innovation in the silver economy, ensuring that technology is truly “age-friendly” and “benefits the elderly,” it is essential to coordinate efforts across multiple areas, including policy, capital, application scenarios, and talent.
First, China should leverage its vast market to build competitive advantages across the entire value chain – from application integration and research and development to capital and talent development – creating an open, innovative ecosystem driven by markets, supported by applications, and rooted in talent.
Second, it is crucial to closely follow global frontiers in silver economy technologies, strengthen international exchanges and cooperation, and nurture globally competitive technology-driven silver economy enterprises in the sector.
Third, it is also important to use the value chain to guide major breakthroughs in aging-related technologies, fostering interaction between basic research and industrial transformation to create a virtuous cycle.
Fourth, building a sound digital governance ecosystem to foster a favorable environment for the silver economy is also critical. Silver consumption is personalized and scenario-based, requiring diverse consumption settings, display platforms, and convenience-enhancing mechanisms.
Amid the dual trends of aging and digitalization, bridging the digital divide for seniors and elderly care workers demands multi-pronged efforts. Legal and regulatory governance is needed to ensure a healthy digital environment, integrate digital tools into seniors’ daily lives, and make the digital economy a key driver of the silver economy.
