Consumers ready to take control with new AI-assisted devices

One of the key, long-anticipated benefits of advances in health IT has been the increased capacity for consumers to get in the driver's seat when it comes to managing their own healthcare. And, not surprisingly, that anticipation is only increasing with the rise of AI. In a recent column, Steve Auerbach, CEO of Alegeus, a provider of consumer-assisting healthcare platforms, points to four areas that, with new AI, are "ripe for high-impact innovation." First, he says, new machine learning tools can be tapped to help consumers to select the right combination of plan and benefit accounts "based on past spending behaviors and a future needs analysis – providing recommendations every step of the way with the goal to stretch each dollar further, while at the same time educating the consumer on key topics such as retirement planning and saving strategies." These improvements won't simply benefit consumers, he says, but will also improve the overall health and financial wellness of the overall workforce. Second, he predicts better – meaning "smarter"– consumer spending.