Adapt to China
Making a new country feel a little less unfamiliar.
- What it is
- A live platform for newcomers to China: practical guides, local directories (hospitals, halal and vegetarian food), the ATC AI assistant, a House Planner in testing, and optional paid human support when an answer is not enough.
- Who it's for
- International students, professionals and people relocating, short-term visitors — and anyone with specific needs such as diet, healthcare access, pets or housing sensitivities.
- Problems it solves
- Everyday services — payments, transport, healthcare, renting — assume you already know the system and read Chinese.
- Information is scattered across Chinese-language apps and group chats; translation alone does not tell you the next step.
- Some tasks need a phone call or real coordination, not just an answer — so there is scoped human help.
- My role
- Founder (since July 2026) · user research · product strategy · content · AI-assisted development · operations
02 / How it works
From a social-science question to a product I operate.
How it evolved
- 1
Guides before features Live
Recurring questions became English explanations, checklists and city guidance.
- 2
Structured local data Live
Hospital, halal and vegetarian / vegan finders built from real records.
- 3
ATC AI assistant AI-assisted
Describe a real situation instead of navigating a decision tree.
- 4
House Planner Testing
Budget, commute, move-in date, pets, allergies → a search brief and checklist.
- 5
Human support Human-delivered
Scoped paid help: Chinese phone calls, research, coordination, housing search.
Local directory, October 2026 snapshot — counts change as records are maintained.
ATC AI
- Ask about a real situation. Renting, payments, transport, healthcare, Chinese apps — in your own words, or with a screenshot.
- Two modes. General for everyday questions; House Planner (testing) turns housing needs into a search brief.
- Thinking & Web Search. Deeper reasoning and a search step for time-sensitive facts.
- Honest by design. “AI can make mistakes. Check important details.” A person helps when an answer is not enough.
What people said
I spent an hour yesterday looking for that X ray section even with wechat translate I couldn't find it. … your guidelines are really straight forward and detailed which I really appreciate. you made things smoother and easier
The help from Martin at Adapt to China has been absolutely invaluable since I moved to Beijing. … He then completes the assistance quickly and thoroughly, and won’t accept the fee until he ensures his solution or service is able to satisfy the need. … He has provided me with assistance in finding services for my pet, myself, has helped me to resolve problems with utilities and housing, made calls for me (since I don’t speak Mandarin this is particularly challenging for me) … I wouldn’t have had nearly as successful or seamless of a start here without Martin’s support.
“Recommendations alone are insufficient. People need a sequence of decisions, checks and handoffs — and to know which part is guidance, which is AI, and which is a person.”
Status & limits Live and independently maintained; tools have different readiness levels. House Planner makes a search brief and checklist — it does not fetch listings, reserve homes or guarantee availability. AI answers and directory records need source and date checks; hospital help is navigation, not medical advice. Human services have an agreed scope and price, and decisions and payments stay with the customer. Six paid orders and about RMB 1,000 received (October 2026) are an early signal, not evidence of recurring revenue or scale.