The short videos, circulating on major platforms like Douyin and Weibo, typically show distressed middle-aged women lamenting their decision to remain single and childless. Many clips use hospital settings to heighten the sense of vulnerability, depicting women facing illness and aging without family support.
In one widely shared video, a 58-year-old AI-generated character laments her solitude during hospital visits, while another 56-year-old character expresses deep regret for ignoring her parents’ advice to start a family. Other scenes contrast the “regretful” protagonist with patients in neighboring beds who are being cared for by attentive family members.
Despite labels marking the content as “AI-generated”, the videos have gained significant traction among parents of single children.
One online observer noted of such a video: “We need more of these videos. Let us see who still insists on staying single,” according to the South China Morning Post.
The pressure is felt directly by the younger generation, with one Douyin user commenting, “I’m here because my mum shared this,” while another parent urged, “Everyone, spread these clips and let these young people watch.”
The trend has been met with sharp criticism and sarcasm from younger viewers, who have labeled the phenomenon a “cyber siege.”
A Weibo post using this term has garnered over 50,000 likes, according to AsiaOne.
Critics argue the videos intentionally manufacture anxiety and deepen social divisions between the married and unmarried.
Some users questioned the realism of the AI portrayals, while others found the medium itself telling.
“It’s quite funny that they used AI, because they couldn’t find a real person to cry and urge people to get married,” quipped one Weibo user. Others warned the tactic might backfire, with one netizen noting, “Such videos will only make children more frustrated with their parents pressuring them to get married, ultimately leading to no marriages.”
The digital friction occurs against a backdrop of significant demographic shifts in China. Last year, the national population fell for a third consecutive year, dropping by 1.39 million to 1.408 billion in 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
Marriage rates are also in sharp decline. China recorded 6.106 million marriage registrations in 2024, a 20.5% year-on-year decrease, according to Xinhua and the Ministry of Civil Affairs.
The national marriage rate stood at just 4.3 per 1,000 people.
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