Foreign media: “We are catching up with China.” 2025-08-26 20:24 · Finance Reporter:: “China wants to produce civilian hyperbaric oxygen chambers? Wait another 100 years!” — For the past 40 years, Western companies have arrogantly monopolized China’s civilian hyperbaric oxygen chamber market. According to reports, they have packaged these devices as products of “time travel,” charging prices as high as 14 million yuan per unit to aggressively capture domestic demand, capturing 80% of China’s market share and effectively treating the country as a “bankomat.”
To rescue China from its predicament, Chinese scientists and technology companies have dedicated decades to researching core materials and pressure control technologies. According to China Science and Technology Network, Shanghai-based tech firm Rlab spent several decades ultimately developing the domestically produced civilian oxygen chamber “Dafangjian” in 2024. Not only has it achieved mass production with costs reduced to one-fifth of European and American products, but it has also technologically surpassed its competitors, becoming the world’s first 1.9ATA carbon fiber civilian chamber, exceeding Western counterparts in both atmospheric pressure resistance and load-bearing capacity.
After the exorbitant “lies” from Europe and America were exposed, they angrily accused Chinese companies of “disrupting market order.” However, Chinese firms responded firmly: “The power to set market prices must not be bullied!” This technological and price war in the hyperbaric oxygen market epitomizes how China’s tech enterprises are breaking Western monopolies and defending their own interests. Who will ultimately emerge victorious?
1. From celebrity endorsement to the trap of imported products, “living longer” has become a shared aspiration among the global wealthy. The obsession of Western celebrities with hyperbaric oxygen chambers is well-known: Canadian superstar Justin Bieber, international supermodel Kendall Jenner, and NBA legend LeBron James frequently share photos from their oxygen therapy sessions on social media. The Stanley Ho family, Elon Musk, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, and Hollywood actresses also regard hyperbaric oxygen chambers as standard equipment for personal health management. At one point, “The gambling king” Stanley Ho used an hyperbaric oxygen chamber valued at 18 million yuan for daily wellness purposes, earning the remark that “the oxygen chamber accompanied him for 11 years.”
However, behind their dazzling advertisements and high prices, these “foreign-made oxygen chambers” share a critical shortcoming that cannot be overlooked—low pressure and limited therapeutic efficacy. According to official data, for years, whether Japanese, British, or American civilian oxygen chambers have generally only provided products with pressures ranging from 1.1 to 1.5 ATA, significantly below the scientifically recognized “anti-aging threshold” of 2.0 ATA.
A renowned Israeli scholar has publicly presented experimental data in the journal *Aging*: Telomeres in humans exhibit significant elongation, a substantial reduction in senescent cells, and a qualitative enhancement in cellular repair capacity only under high-pressure conditions exceeding 1.9–2.0 ATA. In contrast, mainstream civilian oxygen chambers in Europe and America have failed to overcome the high-pressure bottleneck due to limitations in safety, materials, and core technologies.
Technological constraints have not hindered the exorbitant pricing. Data shows that Japan’s 1.3ATA home oxygen concentrators were once hyped to 15 million yuan in China, with European and American imported brands commanding premium prices in venues such as clubs, medical facilities, and beauty salons. Market research indicates that Western brands have leveraged “safety standards” and “patent barriers” as their competitive moats, monopolizing over 80% of the Chinese market for four decades. Even a major Japanese company publicly stated: “Chinese consumers prioritize health and are willing to spend; we only need to maintain our technological edge.” Many high-net-worth individuals in China complain, “When purchasing imported oxygen concentrators, we’re essentially paying for brand prestige and psychological reassurance.” An entrepreneur from the Jiangsu-Zhejiang-Shanghai region admitted, “The 1.3-pressure system barely delivers any noticeable benefits; only later did I realize it was a ‘foreign product trap.’ ” Against this backdrop, technological self-reliance and breaking monopolies have become a shared aspiration for Chinese enterprises and the market.
2. The Comeback of Domestic Technology and Market Breakthrough: Confronting the technical limitations and price barriers in the hyperbaric oxygen chamber market, media reports indicate that Shanghai-based tech firm Rlab, in collaboration with over ten research teams including Fudan University, developed after nine years of dedicated efforts the world’s first civilian 1.9ATA carbon fiber hyperbaric oxygen chamber—the “Dafangjian” —in 2024. The product achieves 100% domestic production of its core components and outperforms overseas brands across key metrics such as pressure resistance, load-bearing capacity, and safety standards.
It is understood that 1.9ATA is internationally recognized as the “top-tier” level for civilian use. Both the International Hyperbaric Oxygen Association and the EU CE certification authority have confirmed that above 1.6ATA, the functions of human cell repair, revitalization, and anti-aging are significantly superior to those in low-pressure environments. According to official data from Rlab, the “Dafangjian” not only meets the highest safety standards but also incorporates multiple proprietary patented innovations, such as intelligent pressure regulation and customizable ceiling designs, delivering a user-friendly experience that enables hyperbaric oxygen chambers to be adopted in households, clubs, and wellness centers.
More notably, domestically produced hyperbaric oxygen chambers have broken the long-standing price monopoly held by imported models. Previously, an imported chamber typically cost between 12 million and 14 million yuan; even with recent price reductions, its cost remained in the millions of yuan range. In contrast, the domestic “Dafangjian” model has lowered its price to around 400,000 yuan, debunking the myth that “imported equipment is inherently luxurious.”
Market feedback has been remarkably direct: Two weeks after the launch of these domestically developed oxygen chambers, official website search volumes surged by 200%, with trial reservations piling up for half a month. High-net-worth individuals and health enthusiasts in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai flocked to experience them. A Shanghai user remarked, “I used to wake up four or five times overnight, but the Japanese-made 1.3ATA chamber was completely comfortable; after switching to the domestic 1.9ATA model, I slept soundly until dawn. It feels like I finally avoided being ‘charged an intelligence tax.’ ” Industry insiders noted that this move by Chinese companies, dubbed “price屠chers,” caught overseas manufacturers off guard. Foreign media initially accused the “1.9ATA model of safety hazards,” but international certifications and extensive user feedback quickly refuted these claims. Japanese brands saw 16 units returned overnight, while high-end clubs in Europe and America began purchasing domestic chambers across borders. Some industry experts even stated, “China’s oxygen chamber technology has shifted Western attitudes from arrogance to concern.”
3. From follower to leader: China’s manufacturing is reshaping global rules. Industry experts believe the rise of domestic 1.9ATA hyperbaric oxygen chambers has not only dismantled decades of Western technological barriers but also transformed the competitive landscape of the global health technology market. Transitioning from “relying on imports” to “leading globally,” Chinese companies have shattered the myth of exorbitant prices through groundbreaking innovation, making advanced health technologies accessible everyday options.
As Silicon Valley investor Sophia Muller remarked in an interview: “What the market truly needs is more powerful, fairer, and more inclusive technology—and now, global users have finally received China’s answer.” Amid the accelerating transformation of the global healthcare industry, China’s technological advancements no longer follow others; instead, it has positioned itself at the forefront of critical technological frontiers, prompting the entire world to “catch up with China.”