Notes from my research trip, from Shenzhen factories and Chengdu AI adverts, to healthy-ageing policy meetings in Beijing and biotech conversations in Shanghai.
The Ministry of Civil Affairs replacing the National Health Commission at the ageing conference says everything about where the problem has moved. Once ageing stops being a health system question and becomes a family coordination question, the whole design changes. It's no longer about what the hospital can provide but about who in the family is managing the appointments, the records, the payments, the reminders.
The adult child as the actual primary user of elder health platforms is something Western health tech keeps designing around rather than for.
I think the AI healthcare trend in China has its uniqueness and may not be easily replicated elsewhere. It's driven by both the aging demographic and the massive demand for efficiency. People are used to having no wait time at the ER and not having to make appointments two months in advance (I'm looking at you, UK). We just expect things to move fast. But that hyper-efficiency takes a toll on all the dedicated doctors and nurses, especially when their wages are not that high compared to those of their Western counterparts. AI could be a way to lift some of the burden off healthcare workers without compromising that fast-paced expectation.
This cuts through the noise / maps the structural shift clearly, volume and public familiarity are scaling faster than clinical maturity. Thanks for sharing.
The Ministry of Civil Affairs replacing the National Health Commission at the ageing conference says everything about where the problem has moved. Once ageing stops being a health system question and becomes a family coordination question, the whole design changes. It's no longer about what the hospital can provide but about who in the family is managing the appointments, the records, the payments, the reminders.
The adult child as the actual primary user of elder health platforms is something Western health tech keeps designing around rather than for.
I think the AI healthcare trend in China has its uniqueness and may not be easily replicated elsewhere. It's driven by both the aging demographic and the massive demand for efficiency. People are used to having no wait time at the ER and not having to make appointments two months in advance (I'm looking at you, UK). We just expect things to move fast. But that hyper-efficiency takes a toll on all the dedicated doctors and nurses, especially when their wages are not that high compared to those of their Western counterparts. AI could be a way to lift some of the burden off healthcare workers without compromising that fast-paced expectation.
Thank you for this nice write up.
This cuts through the noise / maps the structural shift clearly, volume and public familiarity are scaling faster than clinical maturity. Thanks for sharing.