AI in Healthcare: Why Hospitals Are Moving Cautiously Toward Consolidation with Bob Wachter, MD

Learn more about Stanford's online Healthcare AI programs: https://stanford.io/3NEt7uE Check out the AI in Healthcare series playlist: https://bit.ly/AI-in-Healthcare-YT-Series Matt Lungren, Stanford University - https://profiles.stanford.edu/matthew-lungren Justin Norden, Stanford University - https://med.stanford.edu/profiles/justin-norden Guest Speaker: Bob Wachter, MD, Chair of Medicine at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) In this episode of the Stanford AI and Healthcare podcast, hosts Matt Lugren and Justin Norden interview Dr. Bob Wachter, Chair of Medicine at UCSF and author of The Digital Doctor and The Giant Leap. Wachter reflects on the rapidly evolving AI landscape, contrasting big-tech model races with the unique dynamics of healthcare, where Epic and the EHR remain central. They discuss AI’s role in clinical workflows, digital scribes, decision support, and consumer-facing tools, highlighting issues of trust, safety, liability, and consolidation. Wachter emphasizes cautious but steady adoption, the inevitability of AI-powered practice, and the tension between innovation and incumbent platforms.