Building a New Ecosystem for the Silver Economy • Charting a New Blueprint for Cross-Border Integration
ShanghaiJune 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The 2026 Shanghai International Exhibition on Senior Services, Rehabilitation and Assistive Devices (referred to as “Shanghai Senior Care Expo”) concluded on June 6 at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre. The expo was co-hosted by the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau and the Shanghai Municipal Council for the Promotion of International Trade, and organized by the Shanghai Municipal Center for Senior Services Development, the Shanghai Intex Exhibition Co., Ltd., and the Shanghai Silver Economy Trade Development Co., Ltd.
I. Overview of This Edition
This edition of the expo attracted senior care brands from 22 countries and regions, including China, Austria, Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Russia, France, South Korea, Canada, the United States, Japan, Sweden, Switzerland, Singapore, New Zealand, Israel, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Iceland, as well as China’s Hong Kong and Taiwan. Over 680 exhibitors participated, with an exhibition area reaching 60,000 square meters, marking a historic peak in scale.
As the international influence of the Shanghai Senior Care Expo continues to rise, a vision of “global resources entering Shanghai, with the entire city’s strength mobilized” has taken shape. On one hand, AID 2026’s international “circle of friends” expanded, attracting enterprises and institutions from 22 countries and regions. Notably, the Australian pavilion doubled in size compared to last year, while Canada and the UK also joined as official delegations. On the other hand, this expo featured the largest-ever simultaneous showcase of district-level forces in AID’s history. Districts such as Xuhui, Changning, Putuo, Jing’an, Pudong, Minhang, Qingpu, Chongming, and Jinshan participated primarily through district-owned state enterprises; districts like Huangpu, Hongkou, Baoshan, Songjiang, and Jiading also appeared as district-level delegations, collectively presenting their respective resource endowments and industrial characteristics in the silver economy.
In terms of brand breadth, this expo can be described as an “all-star extravaganza” of China’s silver economy. Leading brands from over ten sectors—including senior services, home appliances, home furnishings, assistive devices, food, automotive, telecommunications, finance, and cultural tourism—all made appearances, painting a picture of industrial integration. In the senior services sector, stalwarts like Taikang Home, CITIC Senior Care, Ren Shou Tang, Guo Kang, Xin Xuhui, and Shu Yi Lian Kang gathered. In the home appliances and smart home segment, Haier, China Telecom, and China Unicom participated deeply with silver economy scenarios. In the senior-friendly home and bathroom sector, IKEA, Hu Shang Ming Ju, and Shi Dao jointly presented. In the rehabilitation assistive devices track, leading brands like Yuwell, Paramount Bed, and Qisheng were all present. In the silver diet and nutritional health field, giants like Danone, Bright Food, Li Cheng, and A2 crossed over. In the financial sector, institutions such as ICBC, CCB, Bank of China, Bank of Communications, Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank, Bank of Shanghai, SPD Bank, and Shanghai Trust gathered. In the tech mobility track, accessible vehicle companies like SAIC Maxus, Fengshi, Johnson, and Dazhong competed alongside hardcore tech forces like Cheng Tian Technology, Ken Qi, and Xiao Shen Tong, comprehensively reshaping the silver mobility ecosystem. In the cultural entertainment and tourism sector, brands like Spring Travel, Dong Li Club, and Dunhuang Musical Instruments illuminated the spiritual world of seniors. The leading forces from over ten sectors converged in the same time and space—AID 2026 was not just an exhibition, but an era’s collective answer to “how to age.”
In the realm of silver tech black technology, this expo witnessed a new trend of hardcore technology accelerating from institutional use to home scenarios. In the robotics track, embodied robots like bipedal humanoid robots and bionic panda quadruped robots, tech mobility robots like guide dog robots, intelligent walking assistance robots, and intelligent mobility scooters, and emotional companion robots like AI multimodal health service robots and AI smart senior companion robots—a batch of innovative products made their debut, answering the era’s question of “who accompanies, who cares for.” On the other hand, the continuous advancement of exoskeleton technology is giving more people control over their bodies again. Knee joint assistance exoskeletons and lightweight exoskeleton robots are entering the stairs and hallways of ordinary homes. From intelligent companionship to precise mobility assistance, from daily care to rehabilitation empowerment, a “joint fleet” of technology covering multiple scenarios has taken shape. When technology is no longer a distant imagination but a warm reliance within reach of seniors, the silver economy becomes not just an industrial track, but a mirror reflecting social progress and human warmth.
As a new highlight of this expo, financial power made a high-profile appearance in a cluster formation. With the coordinated support of the Shanghai Headquarters of the People’s Bank of China, the W2 Hall hosted the first-ever senior finance zone in the expo’s history—ICBC, CCB, Bank of China, Bank of Communications, Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank, Bank of Shanghai, SPD Bank, and Shanghai Trust gathered together, with banks, trusts, and insurance companies jointly appearing, offering one-stop services including savings and wealth management, risk protection, and integrated services like voluntary guardianship plus senior care trusts. The joint exhibition of voluntary guardianship and financial products moved “I call the shots in my old age” toward actionable contracts. The establishment of this zone marked Shanghai’s “finance + senior care” services moving from fragmentation to systematization, from product-driven to demand-driven, laying a solid financial foundation for the start of the “15th Five-Year Plan.”
II. Concurrent Conferences and Activities
The Shanghai Senior Care Expo is not only an annual trade event for China’s senior care industry but also an industrial empowerment platform for resource aggregation, peer exchange and collision, and collaborative co-creation. During this expo, 12 themed exchange activities and specialized salons were held, inviting nearly 100 industry experts and business leaders to share insights, attracting nearly 4,000 on-site participants. The content was not limited to traditional senior care service experience sharing but systematically covered emerging sectors such as silver tech, senior finance, silver consumption scenarios, and cross-regional collaboration. Each activity precisely targeted industry pain points and trend frontiers, receiving unanimous praise from participating peers.
On the afternoon of June 4, the most anticipated intellectual feast of this expo, the “2026 AID Silver Industry Innovation and Development Conference,” was successfully held in the Pudong Hall of the Kerry Hotel Pudong. With the theme “Explore • Innovate • Lead: New Drivers of the Silver Economy and Urban Practice,” distinguished guests including humanities and financial observer Qin Shuo, Professor Zhang Lufa, Vice Dean of the School of International and Public Affairs at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Shanghai Municipal Counselor Wu Ruijun were invited to attend. Alongside representatives from the People’s Bank of China, SPD Bank, Ant Group, Fourier, Danone, and CITIC Senior Care, they progressively outlined a complete picture of the integrated development of “government, industry, academia, research, and application” in the silver economy, covering dimensions such as new consumption, financial innovation, technology scenarios, standard systems, physical operations, and scientific nutrition. Additionally, adhering to the philosophy of “industrial height and professional perspective,” the Shanghai Senior Care Expo concurrently held the “Big City Senior Care” Innovation and Development Conference. Focusing on six themes—senior finance, dementia care, community and home-based care, dietary nutrition, voluntary guardianship, and smart senior care—over 40 industry experts and corporate representatives engaged in three days of industry exchange, offering the industry an annual event combining intellectual height and practical depth.
Guided by the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism and hosted by the Shanghai Cultural and Tourism Industry Development Promotion Center, the “Shanghai Silver Tourism Resource Allocation and Matching Event” aimed to build an efficient platform for matching silver tourism product supply with channel demand, leveraging the expo’s industry influence and audience base to help Shanghai become a high-quality silver tourism destination. The event gathered forces from cultural tourism enterprises, financial institutions, and silver communities, further promoting the deep integration of culture, commerce, tourism, sports, and exhibitions, forming a new silver consumption ecosystem of resource sharing, ticket linkage, and scenario co-creation.
Furthermore, the successful hosting of activities such as the “AID Talk Industry Salon,” “AI Emergence, Silver Renewal – Senior Care Minority Report Season 3,” “Silver Economy Entrepreneur Salon,” and “2026 First Silver Economy Street Format Innovation Conference” further enriched the expo’s topics and content, presenting a splendid “feast of ideas” for the audience.
III. Themed Exhibition Zones
The “Silver Life Exhibition Zone,” with the curatorial theme “Where the Heart Finds Peace is Home,” focused on current hot topics in the silver economy, such as senior finance and new silver consumption scenarios. It systematically integrated outstanding products and implemented projects from the 2025 Silver Three Innovation Competition, showcasing Shanghai’s diverse scenario construction and innovative practices in the silver living field. In addition to regular displays, the zone collaborated with the “Silver Economy Living Room” to host expo-specific events, building a dialogue platform between government, enterprises, and professional institutions to promote policy coordination and efficient resource alignment in the senior care field. Meanwhile, the zone created an immersive senior-friendly model room and launched an “Accessibility Space Error-Checking Challenge,” guiding visitors through interactive tasks to identify and optimize common obstacles in home environments, popularizing senior-friendly renovation concepts and related policies through fun participation. Overall, the zone balanced display, exchange, and experience, striving to enhance visibility and social communication, allowing every visitor to feel the warmth and possibility of “peace of mind is home.”
The “Rehabilitation Assistive Device Innovation Zone” deeply presented the “Le Wu You Xiao Wu” brand meticulously crafted by the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau, showcasing the latest achievements in the city’s rehabilitation assistive device field and promoting the deep integration of products with diverse life scenarios. The expo featured four innovative integration experience areas—”Travel Social+,” “Cognitive Rehabilitation+,” “Home/Institution+,” and “Exoskeleton Competition Evaluation Zone”—where citizens could feel the warmth of technology through interaction and understand how assistive devices can rekindle hope in life through experience.
Building on the 2025 edition, the “Party and Mass Service Station” further expanded its functions and innovated service content, continuing to focus on the needs of the masses and providing more thoughtful and comprehensive services for visiting audiences. Policy consultation, legal aid, health clinics, and convenient rest areas—one-stop services made visitors feel that “the organization is right by their side.” The deep integration of Party building and people’s livelihood made the principle of “serving the people” tangible. Additionally, during the expo, the Party Committee of the Shanghai Municipal Council for the Promotion of International Trade continued to organize young Party members to go to the front line, providing volunteer services in the “Wheelchair Driving School” activity area, including wheelchair usage explanations, experience assistance, and temporary rest guidance, jointly strengthening the expo’s service guarantee.
The “Lao Shi Hui Exhibition Zone,” with the theme of the “15-Minute Meal Assistance Service Circle,” condensed the practical achievements of Shanghai’s meal assistance services for seniors into a visual, tasteable, and experiential live show. The zone featured a dual-scenario layout of “Senior Canteen Space + Urban Meal Assistance Block,” with five interconnected sections—”One Map Overview,” “One Touch Access,” “One Meal Solution,” “One Corner of Life,” and “One Check for Peace of Mind”—collectively presenting the comprehensive results of Shanghai’s meal assistance services for seniors in network layout, digital empowerment, quality improvement, and humanistic care in recent years.
The Shanghai Welfare Lottery Zone, themed “Fortune Horse Brings Auspiciousness, Luck Leads the Way,” integrated public welfare, entertainment, and interaction. Sales consultations, a public welfare wall, photo spots, and game areas—citizens could learn about the stories behind lottery tickets supporting seniors in a relaxed atmosphere. On-site experiences made public welfare tangible, with each ticket pooling love, standing alongside the Party and Mass Service Station to jointly write a warm chapter of the “People’s City.”
IV. Silver Age Life Carnival
As a core highlight of the public service inclusion segment of the 7th “May 5th Shopping Festival,” AID 2026 used the “Silver Age Life Carnival” as an engine, linking the expo with Shanghai’s silver stores, sparking a scene revolution in silver consumption and lifestyle across the W1 and W2 halls. This was no longer a cold product display but an experiential, interactive, and resonant “Silver Life Theater.” In terms of consumption scenario creation, this expo innovated again—deeply integrating diverse formats like senior-friendly assistive devices, silver beauty products, smart wearables, and silver-age cultural tourism into real-life flows, allowing seniors to naturally develop interest while “browsing,” build trust while “trying,” and complete consumption while “playing.” Under the innovative dual-hall linkage, from senior-friendly assistive devices to silver beauty products, from smart wearables to silver-age cultural tourism, browsing and playing, trying and buying became the new normal.
The newly incubated “Silver Age Street • Old Friends Road” cultural and entertainment themed block precisely captured the four major spiritual and cultural needs of seniors—”learning, performing, gathering, and beauty”—using low-barrier, high-participation cultural activities to resonate emotionally across all age groups. Deeply rooted in ethnic heritage and Shanghai charm, the block collaborated with cross-border musical instrument brands like Pearl River Piano, Xinghai, Dunhuang, Enya, Yinuo, and Medeli, integrating music, socializing, experience, and consumption into one, creating a warm and stylish silver life showcase, truly transitioning “aging” to “thriving in old age.”
In early June in Shanghai, the silver wave intertwined with innovative energy. As the 2026 Shanghai Senior Care Expo concluded successfully, looking back at this three-day industry event, the resonance of the silver economy with technological innovation and the accelerated leap of senior services from “aging” to “thriving in old age” were clearly visible. This was not only a concentrated review of industry achievements but also pushed society’s understanding of aging to new heights. Technology is no longer cold code but a warm reliance within reach of seniors; the exhibition hall is no longer a pile of products but an experiential and resonant “Silver Life Theater.” The silver economy is moving from “potential” to “explosion,” from the “periphery” to the “center.” From June 10-12, 2027, let us meet again by the Huangpu River to witness the silver industry, with a more open attitude and more grounded practices, writing a warm and vibrant era’s answer for everyone’s future.