In a coordinated move to support national economic priorities, eight government departments have jointly released a new action plan aimed at significantly boosting consumption in the smart home sector. The initiative aligns with the country's 15th Five-Year Plan, which emphasizes enriching smart home scenarios and supporting the age-friendly renovation and digital upgrading of older residential properties. The plan is designed to meet the diverse needs of different consumer groups by expanding the supply of high-quality products and services.
A core focus of the plan is to expand the supply of premium smart home offerings. Authorities will encourage manufacturers to intensify their research and development efforts in smart home products by fostering the cultivation and opening of digital home industry chain scenarios. To bridge the gap between consumers and technology, the plan calls for home furnishing malls and shopping centers to establish dedicated smart home experience centers and model rooms for whole-home intelligence. Concurrently, efforts will be made to nurture large-scale home improvement enterprises and platforms known for their integrity and standardized services, enabling them to offer personalized and diversified renovation packages that emphasize customized, order-based, and appointment-based services. The strategy also targets the development of smart home hardware and software products based on domestic open-source operating systems, alongside integrated solutions.
To ensure a seamless user experience, the plan outlines measures to improve the smart home standard system. This includes refining the grading and evaluation criteria for smart home product intelligence levels and accelerating the implementation of mandatory national standards for device interoperability to promote integrated whole-home development. A key technical step involves urging telecom operators to enable IPv6 by default on home broadband network equipment, thereby increasing the household network connectivity rate. For newly constructed fully-decorated residences, the plan sets clear requirements for installing basic smart products and encourages the deployment of fiber optic cabling to individual rooms. Ongoing efforts will also continue in the development and application of key standards for smart homes and smart communities.
Directly addressing consumer demand, the plan details support for smart home purchases through the 2026 consumer goods trade-in policy. Local governments will be empowered to autonomously and reasonably determine which smart home product categories qualify for subsidies and the corresponding subsidy levels. This financial flexibility is intended to streamline and encourage the purchase of new whole-home smart systems, making them more accessible to a broader population.
Recognizing the needs of an aging society, the plan dedicates a section to the development of elder-friendly smart home solutions. It promotes products designed for aging in place, such as home service robots, health monitoring devices, and intelligent care systems. Companies will be guided to incorporate elder-friendly design principles—covering product dimensions, ease of operation, dialect recognition, and safety performance—to enrich the availability of suitable smart home products and renovation services. Furthermore, a certification scheme for silver-hair products will be introduced specifically for this segment of the smart home market.
An efficient recycling chain is vital for the sustainable growth of the sector. The plan instructs local authorities to establish waste home furnishing recycling points in a scientifically sound manner, incorporating these networks into relevant planning frameworks and providing land and spatial support. It encourages collaboration between home furnishing and renovation companies and recycling firms, promoting service models such as "deliver new, collect old" and "Internet + recycling." The adoption of mobile collection methods, described as "using vehicles instead of warehouses," will also be promoted to enhance logistical efficiency.
To bring services closer to residents, the plan leverages the construction of 15-minute convenience living circles. Leading enterprises will be encouraged to set up comprehensive home renovation service stations in qualified neighborhoods and communities. These stations will consolidate various convenience services, including repair and maintenance, item storage, and recycling and exchange, while also creating spaces for consumers to experience whole-home smart technology firsthand.
Finally, the plan underscores the importance of fiscal and financial support to drive growth. Financial institutions will be encouraged to develop a diverse range of consumer financial products and services tailored to home furnishing and renovation needs. By leveraging fiscal discount policies for personal consumption loans, the plan aims to guide financial institutions to increase lending support for smart home spending, actively facilitating consumers' ability to purchase related products and services.