Luo Yonghao Criticizes TV Elderly Mode as China Shipments Hit 16-Year Low; Makers Turn to AI
Luo Yonghao, the well-known entrepreneur, criticized smart TV elderly modes after his parents still struggled to operate them, sparking a viral discussion. China's TV shipments fell to 32.9 million units in 2025, down 8.5% year-on-year, a 16-year low, partly due to subsidy pull-forward. Smart TVs now cover 70% of households, with daily activation at 52% and average viewing time exceeding 5.6 hours. In response, manufacturers TCL and Hisense are integrating AI, including DeepSeek models, to offer voice-command and one-button solutions for elderly users.
On July 25, 2025, Luo Yonghao posted on Weibo that he had replaced his parents' smart TV twice, even trying the manufacturers' elderly-friendly mode, but his parents still could not operate it independently. Eventually, they had to install an IPTV set-top box. The topic went viral, with many users sharing similar experiences: ads on startup, needing to switch apps for shows, pop-up paywall windows, and elderly users unable to find the back button after pressing the wrong key. The frustration is real, but blaming only hardware makers is incomplete. China's TV brand shipments totaled 32.895 million units in 2025, down 8.5% year-on-year, the lowest in 16 years. The decline partly reflects a pull-forward effect from national subsidies that concentrated replacement demand in the fourth quarter of 2024, so it cannot be simply interpreted as the decline of television.
A white paper on the smart large-screen industry released in April 2026 showed that the number of smart TV terminals reached 439 million, covering 70% of Chinese households, with average daily viewing time exceeding 5.6 hours, surpassing the 4.1 hours per day that netizens spend on mobile phones. The daily activation rate of smart TVs stood at 52%. The complexity of TV operation is not solely the responsibility of hardware makers. China's internet TV operates under a license system; the National Radio and Television Administration has issued seven integrated broadcasting control licenses. Video websites must cooperate with license holders to launch TV apps. The control over start-up ads, tiered pricing, and membership system design mainly lies with content apps and broadcasting platforms. Hardware makers have limited influence. The reason elderly users can use IPTV set-top boxes is that they offer a single usage mode; smart TVs provide more functions, inevitably increasing operational complexity. Manufacturers have been trying to address the issue. TCL's Lingkong System 3.0 supports far-field voice recognition and dialect recognition, while Hisense has added a dedicated AI button on its remote control.
In February 2025, Hisense TVs integrated DeepSeek, combining its proprietary Xinghai large model with DeepSeek's technology foundation to incorporate AI agents for video, gaming, and more. TCL, through its Fuxi AI platform, integrated the full version of DeepSeek-R1, building 16 AI agents covering education, entertainment, and other scenarios. The goal for both manufacturers is to enable elderly users to watch content through voice commands or a single button press.
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The event has a measured impact on 1 industry. The strongest current signal is mixed for Home Appliances, with intensity 50/100 and 70% confidence over a short term horizon.
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