Seventy-five percent of U.S. health systems are now using at least one artificial intelligence application, up from 59% in 2025, a new survey from Eliciting Insights found.
The go-to market research firm’s survey (PDF) polled executives from 120 health systems across the U.S. for its second annual AI Adoption Survey. The respondent pool reflected a range of system sizes and electronic medical record platforms.
“In 2026, health systems are embracing AI to address both workforce constraints and financial pressures," said Trish Rivard, Eliciting Insights CEO, in a statement. "Organizations have moved beyond pilots and are now strategically deploying solutions that directly impact provider burnout and the bottom line.”
AI platform adoption didn’t just surge among systems implementing one platform, as 50% of respondents indicated their systems use three or more applications. More than half of the health systems that were able to quantify the return on investment of deployed AI solutions reported at least a 2x ROI.
However, the survey found adoption experience of AI solutions is mixed among respondents—with challenges ranging from slow implementation to staff hesitation.
The most widely adopted AI applications remained consistent year over year, the report found, with clinical note-taking and ambient listening at the top. Researchers observed the following AI platform implementation and growth between 2025 and 2026:
- Clinical note-taking: 68% adoption, 62% growth YoY
- AI-based clinical documentation improvement: 43% adoption, 59% growth YoY
- AI coding solutions: 36% adoption, 29% growth YoY
- Draft replies to patient texts: 36% adoption, 80% growth YoY
- AI denial prediction: 25% adoption, 4% growth YoY
- AI admin chatbots: 25% adoption, 19% growth YoY
- AI prepopulated technical appeals: 21% adoption, 50% growth YoY
- AI prepopulated clinical appeals: 19% adoption, 27% growth YoY