Among the various impacts of “artificial intelligence” on society, education is the first to bear the brunt of their effects. Some Chinese scholar have pointed out that, under the current new situation, we urgently need to apply “artificial intelligence” in our education management. We should train a group of “pioneers in AI era” (innovative and talented people in the field of “artificial intelligence”). These people should have sufficient practical knowledge and ability needed in the era of “artificial intelligence”. They should be capable enough to make effective use of the “AI system”.
 
The impacts of AI on elderly education are also significant and profound. Elderly universities must take actions to adapt to this overall technological and social transformation. Here, I would like to elaborate further on the following several aspects.  
 
Part One: The Transformation of the Contents of Education
 
The application of AI will change the contents of elderly education from “intellectual, physical and aesthetic aspects” to “moral, physical and aesthetic aspects”.
 
The purpose of current elderly education is mainly to expand knowledge and cultivate ability. Among the relatively younger elderly students, a number of vocational skill training are also conducted. In an era with a high degree of AI application, however, such contents will give way to “moral, physical and aesthetic education”. That is to say, at a time when man-machine cooperation is possible, elderly education is mainly used to cultivate the thought and morality of the elderly students. Education is expected to help them improve the quality of their thinking, their physical health, and their aesthetic taste.
 
Part Two: The Transformation of the Methods of Learning
 
The application of AI will change the learning methods of elderly students from “collective study in the classroom” to “individual study in the cyberspace”.
 
“Individual study” is the most direct result of AI application in education. In this circumstance, AI may be used to analyse the study of every elderly student according to their learning style. AI can provide each student with the proper guidance (suggested learning contents and learning methods). AI can also help create a suitable learning environment. AI can give full play to the potential of every elderly student. AI can possibly help our elderly students to develop in a fully free and harmonious manner.
 
With the support of AI technology, the learning experience of our elderly students will definitely become more intuitive and interesting.
 
Part Three: The Transformation of the Structure of Teachers
 
The application of AI will transform the teaching team of elderly universities from “human teachers” to “AI teachers” (an “AI teacher” refers to the “human + AI equipment” teacher).
 
The current teaching contingent of elderly education is mainly composed of “human teachers”. In an era with a high degree use of AI, however, teachers of elderly education will be composed of both “human teachers” to “AI teachers”. Among them, those engaged in front-line teaching will mainly be “AI teachers”. “Human teachers”, on the other hand, will mostly be responsible for providing teaching advice, training of AI teachers, curriculum research and development, and so on.
 
Part Four: The Transformation of the Resources of Education
 
With the use of AI technology, the resources for elderly education will be changed from a state of being “fixed, static and closed” to “flexible, dynamic and open”.
 
Supported by AI technology, a lot of the resources for elderly education will be shared by many learners. As long as the elderly people have Internet access and terminal equipment, they can learn their expected knowledge and skills (from a shared platform) at any time and in any place. Big data can actively promote the “dynamic opening” and “real-time formation” of the resources for elderly education. Therefore, these resources could be spread from a school to a region, from a region to the whole country, and finally from a country to the whole world.
 
Part Five: The Transformation of the Environment of Education
 
With the use of AI technology, elderly education will be transformed from a “real environment + local space” to a “real environment + virtual reality / global space”.
 
In an era with a high degree of AI application, the environment of elderly education is the combination of “real space and virtual reality”. The global sharing of educational resources can help expand the space of elderly education from within the territory of one country to almost anywhere around the world. This may help create a global classroom, which will guarantee the flexible learning opportunity (at any time and in any place) for the elderly people. This will also enable the elderly people to learn beyond the limit of time and space.
 
Part Six: The Transformation of the Form of Education
 
The traditional education for the elderly is mainly based on teaching at school. In an era of artificial intelligence, the system of elderly education will consist of “three forms”, namely, elderly education at home, elderly education at school, and elderly education in society. This combination of three forms will make up a “complementary organism”. In AI era, elderly universities will not be restricted by their walls and gates. Elderly education will have the true characteristics of “education for the society” and “society based on the education”.
 
In order to deal the challenges of artificial intelligence, we need to conduct a number of new research projects concerning elderly education.
 
For example, we need to further study and re-define the nature of elderly universities. What kind of institution is a university for the elderly? —— Is it an educational institution? Is it a cultural institution? Is it an R&D institution? Is it a training institution for AI teachers? Or, is it an organization for coordinating the learning needs of the elderly people? Besides, we need to re-determine the central task of elderly universities.
 
—— The topics for our research include: R&D of the curriculum of elderly education, AI experiment in elderly education, training of AI teachers for elderly education, and the cooperation in elderly education between different countries around the world. Certainly, we also need to have a renewed understanding of the basic theory of elderly education (the essence, value, purpose, and system of elderly education).
 
Finally, everything that has been discussed above can be summed up into just one fundamental question. That is, in an era with a wide use of AI, is it still possible for our traditional elderly universities to exist? If yes, in which form should these universities exist?