How young Chinese are turning to AI to tell their fortune amid fear of the future

Tarot enthusiast Haicen Yang used to look to her cards for guidance. These days, the 21-year-old from Chongqing, in southwestern China, is tapping into a new energy source for her readings: generative artificial intelligence. Yang says that by combining the ancient Chinese concept of ba zi – how a person’s birth year, month, day and hour can influence their fate – with astrology apps and AI-powered chatbots such as ChatGPT and DeepSeek, she is able to glimpse into the future. This extends to looking into her own future: she recently asked ChatGPT to check on her compatibility with her boyfriend based on their ba zi. “I input our birth dates, gender and birthplaces into an astrology app, got our ba zi, then imported the results to ChatGPT with the prompt: ‘Assume you are a feng shui master; please use our ba zi to assess our relationship,’” Yang says. Traditional Chinese philosophy uses five elements – wood, fire, earth, metal and water – to describe the relationship between things in the universe. Yang discovered that she belongs to the water element while her boyfriend belongs to the wood element. “Based on the theory of the five elements, water can nourish the wood, so I can nurture him in the future, regardless of his career or studies,” Yang says. ChatGPT went on to explain that their Chinese surnames also contain both wood and water elements, which makes them the perfect match. “[My boyfriend] will give me lots of support and feedback as well,” says Yang. The results of her research brought her much relief. Yang is among a growing number of young Chinese people turning to AI to tell their fortune. On the Chinese social media platform RedNote, also known as Xiaohongshu, the hashtag #deepseekfortunetelling has amassed 42 million views to date, while #deepseekcantellfortune has nearly a million views. One reason behind this trend is a general feeling of uncertainty and pressure among young people in China. “People use these fortune-telling services to buy themselves peace of mind and minimise the fear of the unknown future,” says Ding Yiran, a Beijing-based fortune-teller who specialises in ba zi analysis. “For instance, some even wear different-coloured accessories or clothes based on the readings to try to change their luck.” Ding, who spent more than three years self-studying fortune-telling using ba zi, says she has met many young people eager to know what the future holds for them, especially during the current period of economic downturn when the unemployment rate is high. According to figures released by China’s National Bureau of Statistics in May, the unemployment rate among Chinese people aged 16 to 24 (excluding students) stood at 14.9 per cent, which is higher than in 2024. However, views on AI fortune-telling are mixed. There are plenty of videos on RedNote and TikTok pointing out that AI-generated results can be inaccurate. A RedNote user known as Tiffany says DeepSeek estimated her annual income could reach hundreds of thousands of yuan a year after she reached middle age, which was far beyond her expectations. Ding believes AI is not going to replace real-life fortune-telling any time soon. “AI fortune-telling lacks depth. We say it cannot take a holistic view like human [fortune-tellers] can do,” she says. Ling Ling, a fortune-teller from Hong Kong who has been using both tarot reading and ba zi for six years, agrees. Although AI tools can handle menial tasks such as calculations in ba zi and horoscope charts, she says it is not possible for AI to make adjustments by integrating an individual’s personality, life stage and their situation into their readings. “For example, if an AI reading says you have more bijian, which means more friends, that’s likely to be just a superficial observation. The reality might mean competition, or being held back by friends.” The core concept of fortune-telling, according to Ling, is situational – meaning it varies from person to person. There is no set formula for the skill. “The same ba zi can manifest differently based on family, career or geographic location,” she says. Ling likens a fortune-teller to a spiritual healer. “When interacting with clients, what you provide is an emotional value and profound engagement instead of just information delivery,” she says. In her practice, 90 per cent of clients seek positive guidance and human support when they are at a crossroads in life. “People yearn to be deeply understandable, not just coldly predictable,” she says.

How young Chinese are turning to AI to tell their fortune amid fear of the future

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Uncertainty and pressure are causing many Chinese people to turn to astrology apps and AI tools like ChatGPT and DeepSeek for peace of mind

Uncertainty and pressure are causing many Chinese people to turn to astrology apps and AI tools like ChatGPT and DeepSeek for peace of mind