Six Chinese ministries push embodied AI and LLMs into elderly care

On November 6, 2026, IT之家 reported that six government departments — the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Commerce, the State Administration for Market Regulation, and the China National Committee on Aging — had recently issued a policy document titled Several Measures on Cultivating Diverse Scenarios and Promoting the Consumption of Age-Friendly Goods and Products (referred to below as the Measures).

The Measures call for accelerating the application of embodied AI, large language models, brain-computer interfaces, and exoskeletons in elderly care, and for pairing these with age-friendly home renovation, health management, and smart security products that reach households through home-based care services.

On the retail and distribution side, the Measures encourage e-commerce platforms to create dedicated senior consumption sections. Qualifying community elderly care centers and daycare centers may open experience-and-sale outlets for age-friendly products and run trials, displays, and rental or sales programs to push toward broader adoption. Elderly education institutions and meal-service points are asked to embed consumption scenarios within existing facilities and expand into product display and sales. Localities are guided to integrate existing facilities into comprehensive senior service centers (Leling centers) that carry dedicated zones for age-friendly products, blending such purchases with cultural, recreational, and continuing-education services for older adults. The Measures further encourage local governments to select qualified companies and social organizations to build product showcases in community public facilities, leverage local exhibition halls, pedestrian streets, and cultural plazas to market quality goods, and expand the 15-minute community living circle program to broaden the senior consumer offer.