As more healthcare organizations adopt artificial intelligence, there's a newcomer in some C-suites: the chief AI officer.
Two-thirds of health systems plan to increase spending on AI by 25% or more in the next three years, according to a survey published in November by consulting firm Healthcare IT Leaders. Health insurers are also increasingly using AI to streamline operations, train employees and enhance customer service.
Register for Modern Healthcare’s Digital Health Summit May 14 in Chicago
The increased attention and spending has led companies to recruit a chief AI officer who can oversee AI-related projects. The trend has already moved past the private sector — the White House Office of Management and Budget is requiring all federal agencies to designate a chief AI officer who will coordinate that agency's use of AI.
Finding the right executive to take on the role is hard, said Ellen Wieland, chief information officer at VCU Health, which is looking to hire a chief AI and data officer.
"We need someone who can take something that's really complicated and explain it in a simple way that everyone can understand and get on board with," Wieland said. "We're looking for someone who needs to be a lifelong learner and can easily adapt to change because they'll need to keep current on the technology as well as the regulatory and compliance requirements. Everyone recognizes this work is going to evolve a lot in the coming years and so we need someone who's comfortable working in that type environment."
Here is how some organizations are handling the position.
University of California San Diego Health
Dr. Karandeep Singh joined the health system as chief AI officer in December because of the opportunity to work within its Jacobs Center for Health Innovation. The center tests and adopts AI tools that are focused on improving outcomes, he said.
Singh, who came from University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, Michigan, said he is evaluating the various AI tools used within UCSD Health. The health system is also launching several generative AI pilots, he said.
“We’re going to be using large language models at this point, mostly for information extraction and non-time-sensitive use cases with the idea of trying to support key priorities in healthcare operations,” Singh said. “I'm right now involved in the day-to-day work of getting those set up.”
Singh reports to Dr. Christopher Longhurst, UC San Diego Health’s chief medical and digital officer, and oversees two teams within the Jacobs Center. He said it was important to have a chief AI officer specifically accountable for how AI models are used within a health system, rather than have that responsibility handed off to someone else. The success of the role will be measured on how it improves clinical care and the user experience, Singh said.
Elevance Health
When Shawn Wang began working at the Indianapolis-based insurer in 2021 as its chief AI officer, only a handful of people were on his team. Today, about 500 people work exclusively on AI at Elevance, he said.
Wang, who reports to the chief digital information officer, said the role involves technical, business and leadership acumen, which is why it was it was strategically created as a standalone position.
Elevance embeds AI into three core areas, Wang said. It uses the technology to improve the consumer experience, make operations more efficient in areas such as claims processing and aid its members make more informed decisions on their care. The role of chief AI officer helps provide consistency and clarity, he said.
“We have a clear organizational structure and the whole company is aligned on whether a problem needs AI to solve it versus an organization where there is more fragmentation and differing points of views,” Wang said. “We have great alignment in terms of what problem we claim to have solved and whether the accountability is there.”
University of California Davis Health
Dennis Chornenky serves as a chief AI adviser. Sacramento, California-based UC Davis Health hired him as an employee in June 2023 to help oversee its AI efforts — but he also runs a consulting firm that offers his AI advisory services to other organizations.
Chornenky, who formerly served as a White House adviser on AI to former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden, said a lot of organizations are hiring AI advisers rather than chief AI officers because they know they need someone but are still trying to understand what kind of requirements would be needed for the latter role. Health systems and insurers should hire a chief AI officer when they’re ready to invest in an entire team that will have a presence in many parts of the organization, he said.
Related: FDA is digital health’s gatekeeper amid AI boom
At UC Davis, he and his consulting team from Domelabs AI help leaders of the academic medical center understand which AI use cases are the most critical to their clinical and business goals. They’re also informing the executive team on AI governance and strategy. Chornenky said as an adviser, he doesn't report to anyone but works directly with the CEO, chief information officer and chief strategy officer.
“We help the senior leadership team basically lay the foundation for AI adoption,” Chornenky said. “Executives of health systems and academic medical centers are really looking to understand everything from the basics of AI definitions…all the way through to what’s the organizational infrastructure necessary for governance.”
VCU Health, Cleveland Clinic
Richmond, Virginia-based Virginia Commonwealth University Health is hiring a chief AI and data officer who will report to Wieland. The executive will develop the governance and infrastructure that’s needed to use AI for advancing health equity, workforce wellness and patient-centered care, she said.
As the technology and regulatory environment around AI has changed, Wieland said it became clear to VCU Health's leaders that they needed more than just a working group to lead the efforts. “If we want to make meaningful progress, we need a leader who can have the dedicated time and really that specific subject matter expertise to drive this forward through the organization,” she said.
Cleveland Clinic also is seeking a chief AI officer to help the 23-hospital health system better understand when it should partner with a vendor and when it can build AI tools in-house, said Rohit Chandra, chief digital officer. The AI officer will report to Chandra.
“The potential for strategic transformation with AI is only going to increase and that has prompted us to take the leap of faith to say that either we can sit and watch or we can we choose to be there,” Chandra said.
