China’s ‘Are You Dead?’ app sparks debate over isolation and solo living

An app that asks ‘are you dead?’ ignites uneasy conversations in China

A Chinese app that bluntly asks users to confirm they are still alive has gone viral, igniting widespread discussion about loneliness and the growing reality of living alone in China.

The app, called Si Le Me, which translates to Are you dead?, requires users to check in by pressing a button. If a user fails to do so for two consecutive days, the app automatically alerts a designated emergency contact.

Designed for people who live alone, the app has surged to the top of China’s paid downloads on the Apple App Store this week. It costs 8 Yuan (about $1.15) and was launched in mid-2025, though Chinese media reports say downloads spiked only in early January.

Its stark name and simple premise have struck a nerve on Chinese social media, where users have interpreted its popularity as a reflection of deepening isolation in modern urban life.

Solo living is becoming increasingly common in China, particularly among young professionals in big cities and the country’s rapidly aging population. Projections published in 2021 by the Beike Research Institute estimated that China could have as many as 200 million one-person households by 2030, accounting for more than 30% of the population. A government survey that same year found that nearly 60% of people aged 60 and above lived alone or only with a spouse, up significantly from 2010.

One of the app’s creators told Chinese media that the idea emerged from online conversations about safety and isolation among people living alone. The three co-creators were all born in the mid-1990s.

The app’s rise has triggered intense online debate. A user on RedNote wrote that they “sense a deep loneliness” behind the app’s success, arguing that traditional kinship structures have eroded in modern China.

“In big cities, everyone is an isolated, atomized individual,” the user wrote. “People live in soundproof apartments, not even knowing the surnames of their neighbors.”

Other users described the app’s popularity as a collective “cry of loneliness,” while some criticized its name as inauspicious and unsettling, urging developers to rename it. Others said the small fee was worth paying for peace of mind.

Not all reactions were somber. Some users framed the app as a form of meme-style stress relief, a darkly humorous way for young people to cope with mounting social and economic pressures.

One user summed up the sentiment more philosophically: “I check in, therefore I am.”