At the Tanner Hill apartments in Hong Kong, the residents — all aged 60-plus — are enjoying the ancient Chinese tile game of mahjong along with some bite-sized delicacies, dimsum, at one of the on-site restaurants.

Each of the 588 units comes with wheelchair-height kitchen countertops, an emergency button and a motion sensor which will alert the nurses in the building if it does not detect movement for a prolonged period.

"I feel independent living here. I don't need a helper to look after me — I feel safe," said Chun Man-lin, 75, who moved two years ago to Tanner Hill, just a stone's throw from the shopping hub of Causeway Bay.