An aging population in China inspires a new industry: Adult children for hire

An aging population in China inspires a new industry: Adult children for hire - The Washington Post

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An aging population in China inspires a new industry: Adult children for hire

The companionship of young men and women is available for hire to help lonely elders in their day-to-day.

August 30, 2026 at 5:00 a.m. EDT

Today at 5:00 a.m. EDT

6 min

*A companion worker with Time Bank, an organization that provides social support to seniors, helps a client’s mother buy and install a rice cooker in May. (Time Bank)*

By

Huiyee Chiew

and

Lyric Li

Available for rent to a lonely grandparent: the companionship of an adult child.

In China, where a low fertility rate and a rapidly aging population are swelling the number of lonely elders, young men and women are hiring themselves out as “shared” or “outsourced” children.

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