29 October 2026 News

Healthcare : Applications of Chinese virtual humans in the healthcare sector are concentrated in the implementation and standardization of “AI doctor digital avatars.” Qinghuadaxue Zhineng Chanye Yanjiuyuan (清华大学智能产业研究院) incubated Zijing Zhikang (紫荆智康) company launched the “Bauhinia AI Hospital System” (Agent Hospital), constructing a multi-agent collaborative ecosystem covering 27 clinical departments with 54 AI doctor agents in total. Doctor avatars undergo intensive training in a virtual world composed of highly anthropomorphic AI patients, then are deployed to 9 pilot hospitals in Beijing, Jiangsu, Guangxi and other locations across 47 clinical departments, forming symbiotic collaboration relationships with nearly 200 real-world doctors. Beijingxieheyiyuan (北京协和医院) Chief physician of obstetrics and gynecology Ma Liangkun (马良坤), dermatologist Xu Hongjun (徐宏俊) and other clinical experts participated in application discussions of the technology. Hunan Provincial People’s Hospital has built an AI science communication IP new media matrix centered on expert digital humans. Clinical experts need only provide approximately 10 seconds of raw video material, then can batch-produce science communication short videos through AI voice synthesis and lip-sync matching. The initiative has currently assembled 16 backbone experts and produced 206 short videos. At the same time, China Academy of Information and Communications Technology in coordination with Guangzhou Yikedaxue Fushu Funvertong Yiliao Zhongxin (广州医科大学附属妇女儿童医疗中心) and other entities released the “Intelligent Agent Application Technical Requirements for Healthcare Industry Part 9: Pediatrician Assistant” standard, establishing technical specifications for pediatrician assistant agents in medication dosage calculation, vaccination schedule generation, human-machine collaboration, and protection of minors’ rights and interests.

Public Services : In grassroots governance and government service scenarios, AI digital avatars are becoming “digital employees” for government departments and community workers. Chongqingshi Liangjiang Xinqu Guanyinqiao Jiedao Fuli Haiyang Shequ (重庆市两江新区观音桥街道富力海洋社区) leverages the “Mingjing (明镜)” platform’s “Anxin Gongcheng · Minxin Zhineng Ti (安心工程·民心智能体)” to create exclusive AI avatars for community grid workers, combining multidimensional data accumulated through “Yu Kuai Ban (渝快办)” to form portraits of public sentiment, reducing the daily consultation volume handled by grid workers and freeing up more time for them to visit residents. The “Jiangcheng AI Shuzi Shequ (江城AI数字社区)” platform of Wuhanshi Dongxihuqu Wujiashan Jiedao Wunanli Shequ (武汉市东西湖区吴家山街道吴南里社区) creates AI digital avatars based on real grid workers’ images and voices, achieving recognition of Wuhan dialect and non-standard Mandarin, with over 340,000 visits since launch and a significant decrease in average daily call volume for grid workers. Heilongjiang Yichunshi (伊春市) has promoted the launch of digital transformation tools including AI avatar guidance services and intelligent call distribution for 12345 hotlines in the government service sector. Gongshangyinhang Panzhou Tucheng Zhixing (工商银行盘州土城支行) staff members and local police officers jointly exposed a fraudulent scheme in which an elderly person was deceived by an AI-generated fake “news anchor” video and misled into believing in state special funding disbursement, insisting on opening an account, reflecting that AI-simulated anchor images have been exploited by fraud perpetrators for scams.

Marketing : AI digital humans have triggered numerous infringement and governance cases in the marketing and live-streaming e-commerce sectors. Actor Wu Yue (吴越) recently issued a public statement accusing a self-media account of using AI deepfake technology to replicate his image and voice to produce product-selling videos. The account had previously impersonated Olympic champions Deng Yaping (邓亚萍) and Guo Jingjing (郭晶晶) for livestream commerce, among others. The offending account has been permanently banned by the platform. Legal experts point out that such conduct may simultaneously infringe on portrait rights, voice rights, and constitute false advertising, and consumers may claim “refund one and pay triple damages” under the Consumer Rights Protection Law. Hong Kong-listed company Dufu Jiuye Jituan (杜甫酒业集团), seeing slow progress in its liquor sales business, has instead appointed executives to oversee AI digital human and internet marketing-related operations. Douyin platform recently disclosed governance cases of malicious marketing accounts abusing AI, including using AI digital humans to impersonate relatives of public figures and falsely claiming recovery from cancer through consuming certain products to build trust and promote goods. Related accounts number as many as 1,617; other accounts use AI-generated images of middle-aged and elderly men paired with voice recordings to precisely target middle-aged and elderly female followers. Similar “AI Xiaohai” pity-selling commerce has formed a scaled assembly line, with multiple accounts on short-video platforms sharing the same AI digital face, using “auntie and mama” familial rhetoric to induce middle-aged and elderly users to place orders, with individual topic views exceeding 600 million. Additionally, AI-generated virtual digital human “store exploration” videos have begun appearing in batches, with specialized production companies able to generate convincing store exploration videos from shop images in minutes. Hangzhoushizhongjirenminfayuan (杭州市中级人民法院) has issued verdicts in the nation’s first case involving unfair competition related to AI ghostwriting of “product recommendation notes.”

Entertainment : AI-driven virtual characters and digital humans are profoundly reshaping China’s film and television content production chain. Bona Yingye (博纳影业) produced “Sanxingdui: Tales of the Future,” China’s first fully AI-made theatrical film, featuring no real actors with all characters as original digital images, completed over two years with investment in the tens of millions of yuan, though it achieved dismal box office and occupancy rates upon release. Huace Yingshi (华策影视) launched the AI idol boy group “MO:V墨伍,” composed of five virtual members—Lu Heng, Xia Mingzhe, Jiang Yichen, Lin Qiao, and ZENO—and released their debut music video; Mangguo TV (芒果TV) in partnership with Lize Yingye (丽泽影业) introduced five native AI artists—Cheng Du, Fang Yu, Lin Enna, Qi Xu, and Zhan Yan—and simultaneously launched the AI photorealistic drama they star in, “Awesome Friends”; iQIYI officially announced its first batch of contracted AIGC creators, with an upcoming AI acting competition reality show “Love Restart” set to launch. Virtual characters Fang Taozi and Zhou Yiheng, who went viral through starring in the AI drama “The Girl Who Was Laid Off,” have become market-recognized, with star chart quotes reaching the 168,000 yuan level. Meanwhile, cooperation rumors between Hengdian Yingshicheng (横店影视城) and ByteDance claimed that image data from 150,000 background actors would be used for AI model training, sparking widespread discussion about AI squeezing the living space of real actors. Although ByteDance responded that data assets belong to Hengdian or the licensing party and would not be used to train ByteDance’s large models, the reality of Hengdian’s real-person short drama production start rates declining approximately 30 percent year-over-year and group actors’ order volume dropping significantly persists; industry practitioners including young male actor Dai Gaozheng (代高政) and supermodel-turned-actress Hu Bing (胡兵) have successively spoken out publicly about AI’s impact on the performance industry. The “Zaomengshi (造梦师)” company in Shanghai’s Yangpu District specializes in virtual singer management, employing real performers to drive virtual images through motion capture for singing performances, having incubated over 3,000 virtual singers with leading artists achieving over 10 billion views across networks, and reaching comprehensive strategic cooperation with Huana Yinyue (华纳音乐).

Virtual Idols : Multiple named virtual characters are emerging in social and consumption scenarios. Weibo’s official virtual avatar “Miao Wawa” has been included in the list of 2026 Weibo Shijie Dahui (2026微博视界大会) inaugural officially announced guests, ranked alongside real-life artists including Tan Songyun (谭松韵), Meng Ziyi (孟子义), and Liu Xueyi (刘学义), and will serve as a “recruitment specialist” to interact with fans at a conference held in Hengdian. The children’s clothing brand “Bo broadcute (播broadcute)” under listed company Puyuan Cailiao (璞源材料) has created a virtual character named “Bo Ling Yi” (BO), positioned as a botanist. Actor Zhao Liying (赵丽颖) showcased in a livestream a virtual image called “Miao Miao Miao” that she personally conceived and submitted to the “First AI Trendy Collectibles Popularity Contest”—a white cat plush toy with nine tails and heterochromatic eyes, which she wore as a brooch on her person. Tengxun QQ (腾讯QQ)’s “Chaoji QQ Xiu (超级QQ秀)” function continues to serve as a tool for young users to create exclusive virtual avatar identity markers, allowing users to freely customize hairstyles, clothing, accessories, backgrounds and set them as QQ avatars.

Education : Chongqingshi Nananqu Jiaowei (重庆市南岸区教委) released the “Ten Measures for Deepening ‘Artificial Intelligence + Education’ in Primary and Secondary Schools in Nanan District,” proposing the “five ones” targets to be achieved by 2030, including building a regional high-quality education dataset and a composite teaching workforce, planning to realize “one intelligent learning companion per student” and one specialized or part-time AI teacher per six classes, and exploring the co-construction of “AI + Brain Science Learning Power Laboratory” and piloting the development of “scientist digital avatars.” Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence launched a personal intelligent agent SoulAgent that has successively entered Zhongguorenmindaxue Fushuzhongxue (中国人民大学附属中学), conducting practical applications around scenarios such as “help me attend class,” teacher AI avatars, and essay correction: the teacher AI avatar continuously accumulates course materials, evaluation standards, and annotation examples of specific teachers, forming exclusive avatars capable of completing tasks such as essay correction and class summarization according to that teacher’s professional standards.

Enterprise : In the industrial and enterprise services sector, digital humans are being packaged as “digital employees” embedded into production management processes. Zhongguo Bingqi Jianglu Jituan (中国兵器江麓集团) launched the IP image “Jiang Xiaolu” AI digital human to introduce the group’s modular tracked emergency rescue equipment. Haier (海尔)’s Kaaosi COSMOPlat (卡奥斯COSMOPlat) industrial internet platform has created COSMO - iMOM (COSMO-iMOM) intelligent agent products centered on “factory director digital humans” as the core decision-making hub, COSMO - Sphere (COSMO-Sphere) with “CEO digital humans” coordinating business operations decisions, and COSMO - iEMS (COSMO-iEMS) energy and carbon management intelligent agents with “energy station director digital humans” as the entry point, with applications deployed at Haier Chongqing Bingxiang Hulian Gongchang (海尔重庆冰箱互联工厂). Hande Xinxi (汉得信息) disclosed in institutional research that its AI intelligent agent product matrix includes advisory-type intelligent agents such as a proprietary “CFO digital twin” that can simulate profit fluctuations under different policy scenarios. Fanwei Wangluo (泛微网络) provided a digital intelligence solution for agricultural guarantee enterprises, designing a “digital smart office assistant” that can expand into scenarios such as government affairs digital humans to assist collaborative office work. Wuxi’s Da Liyu Wenhua Keji (大鲤鱼文化科技) serves as an “artificial intelligence plus e-commerce” digital transformation service provider, with core products covering AI digital human live streaming systems and AI digital human live streaming all-in-one machines, with its OPC Xiaoyu Zhineng Ti (OPC小鱼智能体) system having served 53 enterprises for installation. The digital human innovation center promoted by China’s Ministry of Commerce and eight other departments has achieved high-fidelity restoration of digital humans in aspects such as facial features, expressions, and movements, and has currently served over 10,000 enterprises, helping businesses reduce costs and increase efficiency in live streaming e-commerce, intelligent shopping guide, and other scenarios.

Cultural Tourism : The cultural tourism and cultural dissemination sectors are actively introducing digital human tour guidance and virtual interpretation capabilities. Huadongshifandaxue Meishuxueyuan (华东师范大学美术学院) The “Brush Formation Dual Perspectives” calligraphy exhibition opened at Shanghai Xiezhi Liu Chenpeiqiu Yishu Zhongxin (上海谢稚柳陈佩秋艺术中心), with the curatorial team launching an AI digital virtual exhibition hall that combines digital human tour guidance technology to expand the display methods of traditional exhibition spaces. A smart cultural tourism industry report released by China Research and Development indicates that 360 Group has independently developed an AI digital human tour guide system that achieves multi-language real-time interaction with an accuracy rate of 98%, widely applied in live-streaming e-commerce and smart tour guidance scenarios. Heilongjiang’s Yichunshi (伊春市) “Taoyuan Lake AI tour guidance equipment” and other distinctive digital cultural tourism projects have successively come into operation. Listed company Fengshang Culture Group Co., Ltd.’s subsidiary Fengshang Huyu (锋尚互娱) is developing virtual interpretation cloud platforms and virtual digital human commercial operations, having previously partnered with Zhongguoyidong Migu (中国移动咪咕) to create the “cyberpunk” metaverse bit scene “J WORLD”.

Companion and Rights : In the areas of emotional companionship and digital rights infrastructure, a deceased companionship project targeting bereaved populations has chosen a cautious technological path: first using photo-generated dynamic videos to meet basic visualization needs, then iterating gradually to avoid prematurely introducing complete digital human avatars that blur the boundary between reality and virtuality. “Yuanlian FacesMarket (元脸FacesMarket)”, founded by teams with backgrounds at Tencent, iQIYI, Douyin, and Xiaohongshu and other major tech companies, has completed a tens-of-millions-level angel round of financing, positioning itself as an AIGC facial and voice authorization rights protection and query platform. It is establishing “Yuanlian Zhazha (元脸查查)” query verification and evidence preservation platform, “Yuan Lianxingtu (元脸星途)” actor signing platform, “FaceBuddy” casting transaction platform, and “FaceTV” compliant content factory, and plans to extend rights protection to AI digital humans and virtual artists, establishing queryable and verifiable authorization files for virtual images. It has reached strategic cooperation with Lianyungang Anfang Jituan (连云港安防集团).

Research and Standards : Chinese universities and research institutions are advancing the standardization of digital human technology evaluation and frontier exploration. Tsinghua University jointly with Ying Weida (英伟达) and other institutions launched the world’s first streaming interactive video generation evaluation leaderboard StreamEval, covering five categories of tasks including digital human dialogue, virtual human performance, world generation, instruction editing, and reference editing, testing a total of 38 models. Among them, Vidu S2 - Avatar (Vidu S2-Avatar) leads in comprehensive scores in digital human dialogue and virtual human performance tasks, reflecting that current models exhibit obvious shortcomings in character identity preservation and continuous instruction execution capabilities.