In doing so, it highlighted the potential for scientific advancements to address the intersection of ageing, longevity, and wellbeing.
Termed ‘longevity capital,’ these financial, technological, and institutional investments aim to extend healthspan and delay the ageing process.
Yet, ageing research is nuanced, as ageing itself is not recognised as a disease by the WHO.
Termed ‘longevity capital,’ these financial, technological, and institutional investments aim to extend healthspan and delay the ageing process.
Yet, ageing research is nuanced, as ageing itself is not recognised as a disease by the WHO.
Image Source: Getty Images
A casual conversation between Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and China’s leader Xi Jinping, picked up by a Chinese state television microphone in September 2025, renewed discussions on biotechnology approaches to extending human lifespan. While some observers dismissed the discussion as beyond scientific reach, particularly on the topic of immortality, it instead points to an anti-ageing research agenda that is slowly building up. Both countries have adopted policies on healthy ageing, particularly in the last couple of decades and have gone on to invest significantly in technologies such as gene-editing and 3D bioprinting to target the ageing process at the cellular level. While speculation has been cast over the veracity and translational potential of some of the studies, anti-ageing research holds strategic implications; similar healthspan-oriented research ecosystems are visible in the United States (US) and India, where researchers and biotech companies are investing in ways to slow down the ageing process and prevent the onset of chronic and debilitating diseases. As a whole, these developments point to the emergence of ‘longevity capital’ – the collection of technological and industry investments that are directed towards extending the human healthspan.
Ageing and the Limits of Geriatric Peace
Many states are undergoing demographic shifts, with population ageing becoming the most predominant one. With low fertility rates and increases in life expectancy emerging as the causal factors, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that by 2030, there will be 1.4 billion people over the age of sixty. Studies show that despite life expectancy almost doubling since 1960, people are still spending 50 percent of their lifespan in poor or moderate health. Countries have begun to focus on the strategic implications of demographic transitions as populations provide economic security and form the foundational unit of a state’s military capability. As populations age, military capabilities may gradually diminish, prompting states to place greater emphasis on enhancing citizens’ quality of life.
In developing the concept of ‘geriatric peace,’ Haas argued that Russia and China would be unlikely to engage in conflict with the US, given that their demographic challenges would constrain economic growth, crowd out military spending in favour of elderly welfare, and diminish the military-age cohort.
In his book, The Geriatric Peace: Population Ageing and the Decline of War, Mark L Haas, an American political scientist, argued that as the populations of major economies age, the likelihood of entering into hot or cold wars will diminish as fewer people and resources will be available. In developing the concept of ‘geriatric peace,’ Haas argued that Russia and China would be unlikely to engage in conflict with the US, given that their demographic challenges would constrain economic growth, crowd out military spending in favour of elderly welfare, and diminish the military-age cohort. Consequently, as these powers age, their diminished military capabilities would compel them to pursue more peaceful foreign policy agendas. He hypothesised that countries would adopt less militarised strategies by diverting funds away from military spending, allocating more funds towards social security (for example, aged care), and entering into security partnerships.
Haas’s notion of the geriatric peace has not completely held true. For instance, Russia’s endeavour to counter what it perceives as NATO’s expansionist motives, beginning with the 2008 attack on Georgia through to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, demonstrates how population ageing does not necessarily prevent leaders from showing more restraint in their foreign policies. Instead, concerns over demographic decline may cause states to act more assertively to secure their interests. Further, with increased speculation surrounding China’s potential invasion of Taiwan, demographic factors may likely be insufficient to deter countries from entering into conflict.
Russia’s endeavour to counter what it perceives as NATO’s expansionist motives, beginning with the 2008 attack on Georgia through to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, demonstrates how population ageing does not necessarily prevent leaders from showing more restraint in their foreign policies. Instead, concerns over demographic decline may cause states to act more assertively to secure their interests.
Traditional responses to demographic decline focused on increasing fertility rates, reforming pension systems, and changing migration policies. More recently, however, demographic ageing is viewed more from a scientific and technological perspective, with states allocating more resources towards developing technologies that will slow down the ageing process or help people live longer. As ageing demographies raise questions over economic competitiveness and resilience, nations are gradually shifting focus towards technologies that can mitigate some of the effects of ageing.
From Ageing Populations to Longevity Science
In ageing populations, it is expected that labour force participation will decline, lowering economic productivity and increasing healthcare expenditure. Under this setting, methods to extend the number of years individuals can be healthy and productive are appealing. Longevity science aims to improve the quality of life in ageing societies beyond social welfare and healthcare provisions. While researchers have long worked on preventing disease and improving overall health, the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated how rapidly new biomedical innovations can be developed when governments perceive a threat to public health and economic stability, and how willing people are to change their lifestyles to live longer and healthier. In doing so, it highlighted the potential for scientific advancements to address the intersection of ageing, longevity, and wellbeing.
While researchers have long worked on preventing disease and improving overall health, the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated how rapidly new biomedical innovations can be developed when governments perceive a threat to public health and economic stability, and how willing people are to change their lifestyles to live longer and healthier.
Ageing research, or geroscience, focuses on identifying and understanding the biological mechanisms responsible for ageing, how to slow it down, prevent age-related diseases, and expand the human healthspan. For instance, geroscience views ageing as a risk factor for conditions such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases, and works by targeting the underlying ageing process. A major milestone occurred in 2013, and later in 2023, when scientists identified and categorised the hallmarks of ageing – interdependent cellular and molecular mechanisms responsible for the ageing process – enabling researchers to study the factors driving age-related disorders more systematically. As a result, efforts in this field have centred around understanding how ageing can be tracked, delayed, or reversed. Geroscience views ageing as a treatable biological process that can be modified by adopting preventative interventions, lifestyle modifications, and therapeutic agents, aimed at extending healthspan.
Longevity Capital
The growing interest in geroscience has been accompanied by increasing investment from governments, venture capital firms, and biotechnology companies. Termed ‘longevity capital,’ these financial, technological, and institutional investments aim to extend healthspan and delay the ageing process. Yet, ageing research is nuanced, as ageing itself is not recognised as a disease by the WHO. Since it is not acknowledged as a direct therapeutic indication, clinical trials focus on factors that contribute to age-related diseases. Research and development focus on biomarkers – for diagnosing age-related diseases, identifying risk factors, and determining treatment outcomes.
Drug discovery by targeting the molecular mechanisms that drive ageing is another research avenue, accelerated by its convergence with artificial intelligence (AI). For example, NewLimit aims to develop medicines that carry out epigenetic reprogramming – epigenetic modifications are changes that occur on DNA during the ageing process – to reverse cellular ageing. HexemBio has developed a synthetic human yolk sac platform as a method to rejuvenate blood stem cells, enabling the production of healthier white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets to extend healthy lifespan. Altos Labs is investigating the use of an immunosuppressive drug, rapamycin, in slowing senescence (or cellular ageing) in animal models.
Termed ‘longevity capital,’ these financial, technological, and institutional investments aim to extend healthspan and delay the ageing process. Yet, ageing research is nuanced, as ageing itself is not recognised as a disease by the WHO. Since it is not acknowledged as a direct therapeutic indication, clinical trials focus on factors that contribute to age-related diseases.
Beyond the private sector, governments and research organisations are building up their longevity research ecosystems. In the US, the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services, is dedicated to advanced biomedical innovation for longevity. Its programme, Proactive Solutions for Prolonging Resilience (PROSPR), was awarded USD144 million to fund studies on ageing interventions. Longevity India, an initiative of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), reflects India’s commitment to understanding and addressing the challenges of demographic transitions. Collectively, these efforts suggest that longevity is gradually becoming integrated within biotechnology innovation ecosystems.
Rethinking Ageing
While the candid conversation between Putin and Xi was widely dismissed as speculation about immortality, there are more consequential developments in longevity. Governments, research institutions, and biotechnology companies are increasingly focusing on increasing human healthspan by slowing down the ageing process and preventing the onset of age-related disease. As demographies transition into ageing ones, longevity research is becoming strategically embedded within biotech innovation ecosystems. The emergence of longevity capital, advances in geroscience, and the convergence with AI suggest that ageing is being approached as a treatable biological process. In this manner, the future of longevity will be about how societies adapt to an ageing world.
Lakshmy Ramakrishnan is an Associate Fellow with the Centre for New Economic Diplomacy at the Observer Research Foundation.
Disclaimer: The author acknowledges the use of OpenAI-GPT-5.5 for proofreading and suggestions for language editing.
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