Artificial intelligence set to transform the patient experience, but many questions still to be answered

ORLANDO – From Watson to Siri, Alexa to Cortana, consumers and patients have become much more familiar with artificial intelligence and natural language processing in recent years. Pick your terminology: machine learning, cognitive computing, neural networks/deep learning. All are becoming more commonplace – in our smartphones, in our kitchens – and as they continue to evolve at a rapid pace, expectations are high for how they'll impact healthcare. As it sparks equal part doubt and hope (and not a little hype) from patients, physicians and technologists, a panel of IT experts at HIMSS17 discussed the future of AI in healthcare on Sunday afternoon. Kenneth Kleinberg, managing director at The Advisory Board Company, spoke with execs from two medical AI startups: Cory Kidd, CEO of Catalia Health, and Jay Parkinson, MD, founder and CMO of Sherpaa.