The coronavirus pandemic expedited the digital transformation underway in healthcare, and patients and providers alike saw benefits to the new tech and virtual solutions. Telehealth appointments, remote patient monitoring services, and amended insurance offerings were able to extend quality care to consumers at a quicker and less-expensive rate. But incumbent healthcare institutions should keep an eye out for big tech companies encroaching on their space, as companies including Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft try to sway consumers from traditional healthcare players through consumer-first, tech-focused approaches. Below, we run through the trends and transformations taking place within the healthcare ecosystem, and outline what traditional health players can do to stay ahead of big tech competitors. While the healthcare industry was slow-moving when it came to digital solutions, COVID-19 upended the entire health ecosystem, including insurance, healthcare delivery, and pharmaceutical spaces.

As US health systems prioritize financial recovery and innovation in the wake of the pandemic, the pressure is on to re-evaluate their infrastructure and emerging technology investments, and to ensure their efforts not only support the future of healthcare delivery, but also provide services more efficiently and cost-effectively. While there is no widely agreed-upon definition of a smart hospital, healthcare executives are nonetheless working toward their visions of the hospital of the future. The digital solutions that health systems are deploying today--like AI--are effectively steps in their evolution into smart hospitals. Several experts Insider Intelligence spoke with agree: A smart hospital triggers action. It effectively leverages AI and machine learning to not only learn from the data, but also act on the data by building automation around it.

With huge amounts of data, expert precision, and timely, accurate diagnoses at the heart of the healthcare industry, it's little wonder machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) are becoming widespread. Insider Intelligence reported that spending on AI in medicine is predicted to grow at an annualized 48% over the next three years. And with numerous research studies already pointing towards AI performing as well as or better than humans, it's generally believed AI tools will assist and enhance human work rather than replace healthcare staff. It is already providing significant improvements across the healthcare industry – from diagnostics to treatment and administration – and is simplifying the lives of patients and doctors alike. Let's look at how AI is shaping the industry today and into the future.

Artificial intelligence (AI) in finance encompasses everything from chatbot assistants to fraud detection and task automation. Most banks (80%) are highly aware of the potential benefits presented by AI, according to Insider Intelligence's AI in Banking report. The decision for financial institutions (FIs) to adopt AI will be accelerated by technological advancement, increased user acceptance, and shifting regulatory frameworks. Banks using AI can vastly improve the customer experience by offering 24/7 access to their accounts and financial advice services. With key business benefits and pressure from tech savvy consumers top of mind, AI is being implemented by FIs across every financial service --here's how: Consumers are hungry for financial independence, and providing the ability to manage one's financial health is the driving force behind adoption of AI in personal finance.

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