Staff members test a walking assistance robot at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026.

The Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots was established in February to teach machines the delicate art of caring for aging humans.

Human trainers here guide various robots through repetitions of grasping objects, maintaining balance and twisting switches while mastering the delicate motor skills humans often take for granted.

The center has become a hub for tech ambition, with 45 companies, including Haier, Hisense and Agibot, deploying 210 products for modular training across ten categories such as medication delivery, emotional companionship and dementia intervention. The facility creates what officials describe as a closed loop where robots are trained and tested, data is shared, standards are verified, and products are then pushed to market. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

Staff members test walking assistance robots at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

Staff members train robots at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

Elderly people learn about brain-computer interface (BCI) devices at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

A staff member demonstrates the functions of a rehabilitation robot at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

A staff member prepares to test an exoskeleton robot for adult users at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

A trainer guides a robot in grasping objects at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

An elderly person experiences a brain-computer interface (BCI) device at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

A robot guides visitors at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

An elderly person interacts with a robot at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)

An elderly person interacts with a robot at Qingdao Training Center for Elderly Care Robots in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, April 9, 2026. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)