The competition among major internet companies for dominance in AI (Artificial Intelligence) gateways is rapidly expanding from food delivery and e-commerce into high-frequency scenarios like family health management.
On April 14, Meituan's Healthcare division officially launched its "Xiaotuan Health Assistant" and a paid membership service called "Health Card." This move signifies that the giant, which started with local lifestyle services, is deeply embedding its AI capabilities into the essential scenario of family health management.
Prior to this, Ant Group's AI health assistant "A-Fu" has been steadily capturing user attention, while general-purpose large models like Tongyi Qianwen have attempted to directly access food delivery services through AI conversations, posing a threat to Meituan's core territory. Meituan's latest initiative is likely a proactive defense of its position as the potential "super gateway" for local lifestyle services in the AI era.
During the fiscal year 2024 earnings call on March 26, Meituan CEO Wang Xing clearly stated, "In the AI revolution, the only meaningful strategy is to actively attack." He also emphasized that Meituan would strengthen its AI search and execution capabilities, striving to upgrade Meituan into a leading AI-driven application and become the primary AI gateway for future local lifestyle needs.
The launch of the "Xiaotuan Health Assistant" now appears to be a major deployment of Wang Xing's "active attack" strategy within a core local lifestyle scenario.
Before introducing the "Xiaotuan Health Assistant," Meituan Medicine had already established a strong presence in the instant retail sector for years. Officially disclosed data shows that Meituan Medicine currently covers 250,000 chain pharmacies and partners with over 500 industrial brands.
According to Li Dawei, Head of Product for Meituan Healthcare, the "Xiaotuan Health Assistant" leverages Meituan's long-term accumulated data from medicine purchases and online consultations, combined with training by professional medical teams on large models. Compared to general-purpose large models, it holds significant advantages in response accuracy and scenario adaptability within medical contexts.
Based on Meituan's official product description, the "Xiaotuan Health Assistant" is not merely a simple Q&A bot but an intelligent agent capable of contextual understanding and family health record management. A user can simply state, "My baby has a cold and fever, recommend a suitable infant fever reducer." Xiaotuan can then comprehend the full request based on information recorded in the family health profile—such as member ages, allergy history, and past medication records—recommend appropriate medication, and directly utilize Meituan Medicine's instant delivery system to fulfill the order.
The "Health Card" is a paid membership service within Meituan's integrated health service chain, offering benefits like cashback on medicine purchases and one-on-one express delivery. It is reported that the "Health Card" medicine discount benefit currently covers over a thousand medications, including more than 300 original research drugs. Its service network spans over 300 cities across China, involving more than 20 well-known chain pharmacy groups and Meituan's own pharmacies.
Wu Jiani, Head of Instant Retail Business for Meituan Healthcare, stated that instant retail is not just a channel for emergency medicine purchases but also a crucial gateway for "household managers" to build a predictable and healthy lifestyle.
An industry analyst commented that Meituan's move is a strategic positioning based on its local lifestyle ecosystem. Having deeply entrenched itself in the "instant medicine delivery" track, the launch of the health assistant effectively combines AI capabilities with offline fulfillment to create a closed loop of "online consultation + offline services."
From this perspective, for Meituan, AI healthcare represents not only a new growth area but also a necessary supplement to its local lifestyle service ecosystem. When users ordering food delivery or groceries on Meituan can simultaneously consult on medication contraindications or health issues, this scenario integration significantly enhances user stickiness and platform value. It elevates Meituan from a "food and entertainment" platform to a comprehensive lifestyle service platform encompassing health services.
Since last year, major tech giants have been making moves in the AI healthcare space. Ant Group, leveraging its payment scenarios and vast user base, entered the C-end health companionship market with "A-Fu." Official data indicates that after the Spring Festival this year, the total user base for the Ant A-Fu App surpassed 100 million, with over half of the new users coming from third-tier cities and below.
Furthermore, JD Health relies on its core pharmaceutical retail business, strengthening monetization through a "doctor-led medication" model. Alibaba Health focuses on B-end doctor assistance, enhancing professional medical value. Now, Meituan is utilizing its strengths in local services and instant delivery to target the high-frequency, essential need of family health management.
It is noteworthy that the intensity of actions by internet giants in AI healthcare and broader AI application scenarios has significantly increased. This trend ranges from the multi-billion-yuan "AI red packet" battles sparked by DouBao, YuanBao, and QianWen before the Spring Festival to the current rush to capture new gateways.
More threateningly, several general-purpose large models are attempting to bypass platforms like Meituan altogether, enabling services like food delivery and ticket booking directly through conversation. If users become accustomed to ordering meals with a single voice command, the fundamental gateway value of the Meituan App itself could face substantial challenges.
Wang Xing also mentioned during the earnings call that the so-called "super gateway" competition ultimately depends on accurately understanding user needs and possessing the ability to execute tasks efficiently—a complexity far exceeding that of ordinary chatbots. Particularly in the local lifestyle sector, consumption scenarios are diverse and complex, with vast amounts of fragmented merchant information that hasn't been effectively digitized. Additionally, local lifestyle platforms require deep management of order fulfillment and delivery, capabilities that general AI currently lacks. "We hope to use the new generation of AI technology to make the Meituan App the preferred platform for users to solve their local lifestyle needs," Wang Xing stated.
From a broader perspective, the concentration of internet giants in AI healthcare essentially represents a search for the core growth engine of the next decade. The traffic dividend of the consumer internet is nearing saturation, while the emergence of large AI models makes personalized, accessible services possible. For Meituan, the combined force of the "Xiaotuan Health Assistant" and "Health Card" is both a critical move to strengthen its local lifestyle ecosystem and the first major offensive in Wang Xing's "active attack" strategy.
Analysts predict that as major players deepen their involvement, the future AI industry will develop towards a trend of "vertical specialization + ecosystem synergy." A single player is unlikely to cover all scenarios, making cross-border collaboration and ecosystem co-construction the mainstream competitive strategy.
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