The AI in MedTech Trend Report 2023 Is Here

At Greenlight Guru, when we want to know exactly what’s happening in the MedTech industry, we like to go to the source: the medical device professionals who work every day to build the safest, most effective medical devices possible.

So, with the buzz around AI getting louder and louder, we wanted to cut through the noise and find out how MedTech professionals really feel about AI tools in their work. What are their attitudes toward AI? Have they begun adopting AI applications in their job functions? What are the barriers that may prevent adoption?

To answer these questions and more, we surveyed more than 200 MedTech professionals—in Quality and Regulatory, Product Development, Manufacturing and Operations, Clinical, and Executive roles—to get the most up-to-date look into their attitudes and opinions toward AI in MedTech.

You can download the full report here, or read on for a summary of the key findings of the original research study. 

Interest in AI is high—adoption is low

The most striking finding of The AI in MedTech Trend Report 2023 is around AI adoption. Despite all the noise about AI that’s out there, just 32% of our respondents say they are using AI in their day-to-day work. Yet 85% state they are interested in learning more about new AI tools. 

Of those who are using AI tools, most reported using ChatGPT for writing and research-related tasks. Other popular tools are Bard, Fireflies, and Midjourney. A majority of those respondents find that the tools are helpful and lead to increased efficiency and time savings. About 15% find them “extremely helpful.”

With so much interest and clear benefits from AI tools, the obvious question is, why are so few MedTech professionals using them?

Barriers to AI adoption in MedTech

Many of the MedTech professionals who responded to our survey expressed significant reservations about the use of AI tools in their day-to-day work. They cite concerns about inaccurate data or answers (which could lead to errors in decision-making), as well as potential privacy, cybersecurity, and regulatory issues, as barriers to adopting AI tools. 

If you work in MedTech, this probably isn’t too surprising. This is an industry that takes its responsibility toward ensuring patient safety seriously. And those who are using AI tools, like ChatGPT, are probably aware of the technology’s limitations, like the problem of “hallucination” (the tendency of Large Language Models to confidently deliver false answers). 

It only takes one bad experience with an AI application to seriously dent the confidence of someone working in an industry with no room for mistakes. On top of that, the vast majority of respondents (85%) state that their companies have not brought on any resources to specifically help with understanding and adopting AI tools. 

Initial skepticism combined with a lack of understanding of these tools is an obvious recipe for a low rate of adoption. 

The road to AI adoption runs through MedTech-specific tools

Despite a low rate of adoption, it’s important to keep in mind that we’re in the early days of the AI boom. When we asked our respondents which business functions they thought would be most positively affected by AI, there is broad consensus that it will impact:

• R&D and Engineering

• Quality and Regulatory 

• Operations and Manufacturing 

It’s clear that MedTech professionals see the potential for AI tools to make positive changes in their work, but they’re not yet convinced that the current generation of AI applications will do it. The Trend Report shows that we’re lacking purpose-built tools, created specifically to help MedTech professionals in their unique, day-to-day work. 

What our research shows is that the MedTech industry is ready and waiting for AI solutions that will make it easier to deliver medical devices to patients and providers—without compromising the product’s safety and efficacy or the manufacturer’s regulatory compliance. 

To get a deeper look at the results of The AI in MedTech Trend Report 2023, and gain valuable insights into how MedTech professionals are using AI, download the full report for free here.

And if you want to get a look at how Greenlight Guru is building the next generation of AI tools specifically for MedTech, get a free demo of our software today ➔