Artificial intelligence in Chinese healthcare: a review of applications and future prospects

Abstract

China's healthcare infrastructure faces growing population pressure and resource gaps. This review explores how AI applications, regulatory frameworks, and commercialization pathways are reshaping China's healthcare delivery system and global innovation standards. China's AI healthcare market is expected to grow from $900 million in 2020 to $1.59 billion in 2023, and is expected to reach $18.88 billion by 2030, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 42.5%. The National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) expects to approve 59 Class III AI devices by 2023, compared with just nine in 2020. Key applications include the widespread use of AI technology in lesion identification; a telemedicine platform serving 13 million users; and AI drug development that shortens the development cycle from 4 to 18 months. Regulatory pillars include the Personal Information Protection Law, which requires explicit consent before processing health data, and NMPA guidelines, which require all AI medical software to undergo three types of review. China's unique combination of centralized health data, policy incentives, and rapid commercialization has created a globally competitive AI medical ecosystem. Continued development requires addressing issues such as algorithm transparency, cross-border data governance, and international regulatory coordination.

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