Journal of Applied Science and Engineering

Published by Tamkang University Press

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AI Service Mode and Business Sustainability of Smart Elderly Care Housekeeper

 2027

 Volume 36

Xiao Wu1, and Chenhao Li2

1Henan Vocational College of Information and Statistics, Zhengzhou 450008, China

2Computer Science and Technology, The Open University of China, Zhengzhou 450000, China

Received: June 15, 2026
Accepted: July 24, 2026
Publication Date: October 09, 2026

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China is rapidly aging. By the end of 2024, the population aged 60 and over exceeded 300 million, and the supply of elderly services lagged seriously behind. Under the existing care pattern, 90% of the elderly choose to age at home, but traditional home-based care faces challenges such as high costs, slow response, and low standardization. The emergence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) provides an important direction to address this issue. Although its application scenarios include safety monitoring for seniors living alone, daily assistance for disabled elderly people, and community care scheduling, its commercial sustainability lacks systematic empirical support, impeding large-scale industry development. Addressing these problems, this study defines the operation of an AI care manager as a systematic solution that centers on a software platform, integrates smart devices with human services, and delivers continuous monitoring and response for home care. Using AI autonomous decision-making levels and service integration as classification dimensions, it identifies three typical service modes: basic monitoring, auxiliary response, and full custody. On this basis, the study constructs a unit economic evaluation model with 12 indicators across four dimensions: income, cost, efficiency, and financials, selecting three representative enterprises for multi-case empirical analysis. Based on operational data from January 2023 to December 2024, findings show that only the auxiliary response mode achieves the sustainability threshold of LTV (customer lifetime value)/CAC (customer acquisition cost) ≥ 3 (LTV/CAC = 4.15), whereas basic monitoring reaches 2.46 and full custody reaches 0.86. The monthly gross profit per user for auxiliary response is 11 yuan (gross margin 13.90%), while full custody incurs a monthly loss of 42 yuan per user (gross margin -14.00%). The break-even user base for full custody must reach 125,000—about 4.5 times that of auxiliary response (28,000). Manual efficiency is the primary variable affecting sustainability. This study proposes the sustainable path of “AI strengthens manpower” rather than “AI replaces manpower,” providing a quantitative decision-making foundation for enterprise technology selection and government subsidy design.

Keywords: Smart elderly care, AI housekeeper, Service mode, Business sustainability, Unit economic model

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