In 2025, we witnessed some truly transformative leaps in healthcare technology driven by artificial intelligence. Whether we’re ready or not, AI is here to stay, and its pace of acceleration is only increasing. Adoption has surged within the industry, with OpenAI recently identifying healthcare as its 2nd fastest growing sector. Which makes it unsurprising to see their recent announcement about ChatGPT Health just a few days into the new year. Seemingly overnight, AI has shifted from an experimental add-on to a strategic mandate, backed by real investment and executive-level urgency. Health systems that hesitate in their adoption of AI will find themselves quickly left behind.
Last year, I shared a set of AI trends I expected to shape healthcare in 2025. As we turn the page on a new year, it’s worth revisiting those predictions: what played out as expected, what surprised us, and what’s ahead for 2026.
A look back: What we predicted for 2025
Overall, all of these areas saw meaningful traction or early momentum, though often in more measured ways than early hype suggested.
- The rise of AI agents: AI agents have absolutely risen in importance. However, persistent data fragmentation and workflow integration challenges limited their impact. Most AI agents have been focused on task execution rather than driving true transformation. But the foundation has certainly been laid.
- The emergence of the chief AI officer: While this role certainly emerged in 2025, it’s not yet fully mainstream. A recent HFMA survey highlighted the chief AI role as the most important new leadership role. As AI becomes more deeply embedded into daily workflows, governance, and investment decisions, will we see more in 2026? I absolutely think so.
- Continued regulatory advancements: Few were surprised to see that regulatory advancements continue to buoy the adoption of AI. The AHA’s push for unified policy frameworks and the AMA’s launch of its Center for Digital Health and AI signaled growing alignment. Federal agencies also made progress shaping guidance that will influence both state- and industry-specific standards.
- Expansion of ambient AI: AI-powered clinical documentation proliferated rapidly, transforming workflows and meaningfully reducing administrative burden. With a handful of clear leaders emerging, consolidation now feels inevitable, bringing both opportunity and complexity for clinicians and IT teams.
- AI-infused workflows: In August 2025, Epic announced its collaboration with Microsoft to build out AI features within their software, impacting clinicians, patients, and operations. These early capabilities point toward a future where AI is not a bolt-on tool, but a native layer that helps users work faster, smarter, and more consistently.
- Integration of AI with wearable devices: Wearable AI advanced beyond basic tracking toward real-world signal interpretation, such as identifying atrial fibrillation patterns, sleep-related breathing changes, HRV and temperature anomalies, and other predictive markers. That said, most insights still functioned as screening or trend alerts rather than standalone clinical diagnoses. Opportunities here seem limitless.
- AI-powered remote care: AI-powered remote care matured from passive monitoring into predictive, scalable care delivery, using machine-learning models to triage alerts, detect early deterioration, and automate interventions across chronic, post-acute, and value-based care populations. As rural health initiatives continue to ramp up, thanks to CMS’s $50B investment, integration and reliance on AI-powered remote care will increase rapidly.
- AI in mental health: AI showed promise in screening for mental health risk using behavioral, engagement, and biometric signals. However, regulatory uncertainty, trust gaps, and ethical concerns slowed its transition into mainstream care. If these three constraints can align, this remains a large opportunity for meaningful change in mental health care.
Looking ahead: What to expect in 2026
If 2025 was about momentum, 2026 will be about maturity. Experimentation will give way to operationalization, and curiosity will be replaced by accountability. Missed opportunities from last year will become this year’s focus areas, with ROI and scalability front and center.
- Ambient AI becomes a foundational EHR capability: Ambient AI will expand well beyond clinician note-taking into multi-persona workflow orchestration. Nurses, care managers, and administrative teams will benefit from automated documentation, real-time coordination, and surfaced next-best actions embedded directly into daily work.
- A bigger focus on outsourcing AI-enabled work: As workforce shortages persist and AI capabilities mature, organizations will have to rethink what truly needs to be done in-house. Partnering with technology-forward vendors will help reduce internal strain and allow teams to focus on higher-value strategic initiatives.
- Traditional reporting tapers as AI-powered self-service takes over: Static dashboards will give way to dynamic, conversational, on-demand intelligence. Leaders and end users alike will expect insights in real time without waiting for monthly reports or analyst intervention.
- AI agents mature: Agentic capabilities will evolve from isolated monitoring and task execution into coordinated, multi-step orchestration across clinical and operational workflows. This shift will unlock more meaningful automation and measurable impact.
- Oracle’s AI-powered EHR ambitions: With official certification now in place, all eyes will be on Oracle’s AI-powered EHR. Whether it proves to be a game changer or a fast flop, there’s no doubt that it will shape industry conversations and competitive dynamics for years to come.
- AI governance balloons as adoption grows: According to the 2025 Digital Health Most Wired National Trends Report, 95% of organizations who have adopted some form of AI have established governance and model evaluation processes, yet 99% still report material barriers to scaling adoption. This gap highlights the urgent need for clearer standards, shared frameworks, and stronger cross-industry alignment.
- ROI measurement becomes the gatekeeper for AI expansion: CFOs, investors, and P&L owners will increasingly demand proof. Future AI investment will hinge on whether efficiency, productivity, and quality gains translate into measurable financial returns, not just promising pilots or anecdotal wins.
From possibility to performance
It’s official: AI in healthcare has moved past the “what if” phase. In 2026, success will belong to organizations that shift from experimentation to execution, embedding AI into workflows, governing it responsibly, and holding it accountable for real outcomes. The question is no longer whether AI belongs in healthcare, but how effectively organizations can leverage it at scale. Those that get it right won’t just keep pace; they’ll redefine what’s possible.
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