China's digital human industry — AI-generated avatars that replicate human appearance, voice, and movement — reached an estimated $600 million in 2024, driven largely by their widespread use in social media marketing and e-commerce. The sector has also given rise to more personal applications, such as AI recreations of deceased loved ones, exemplified by cases like that of Zhang Xinyu, who commissioned an avatar of her late father. China's internet regulator, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), is now moving to tighten oversight of the technology, including banning services that offer minors virtual intimate relationships or content that could cultivate harmful emotional dependencies.