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Abstract: Adult continuing education (ACE) has become pivotal to workforce upskilling, inclusive growth, and lifelong learning. As digital technologies diffuse across sectors, ACE is undergoing a structural transformation that reconfigures delivery models, resources, and stakeholder collaboration. This review synthesizes international and Chinese literature on the policy landscape, institutional practices, enabling technologies, and implementation barriers of ACE¨s digital turn. We first clarify concepts and trace the evolution of ACE under a lifelong learning paradigm. We then examine the application of digital tools (e.g., online and blended learning, AI, data platforms, blockchain), discussing their educational affordances and quality implications. Next, we analyze advantages (expanded access, personalization, resource optimization) and challenges (governance capacity, infrastructure gaps, teacher readiness, quality assurance, equity) reported across contexts. Building on higher education ACE partnerships, resource construction, and remote/online modalities, we summarize promising pathways for service ecosystems, maturity assessment, and rural revitalization. A global perspective (Germany, Russia, etc.) highlights transferable mechanisms such as multi stakeholder ＾coupled cycles￣ and competency standards while case studies showcase domain specific implementations in medicine, archives, and vocational fields. We conclude with a forward agenda emphasizing.
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