How AI is reshaping the doctor's role
During
Digestive Disease Week
(DDW) held in San Diego, California and attended by more than 12,000 physicians, Dr. Prateek Sharma, President of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE), and Dr. Eric Horvitz, Chief Scientific Officer at Microsoft, explored the rapidly evolving role of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare.
Their conversation highlighted how AI is shaping patient care, improving efficiency in the physician's office, and redefining the role of the clinician. Both their fireside chat and individual lectures at the Presidential Plenary Session drew a large and engaged audience, which reflects the increased interest of integrating AI in healthcare.
ASGE president Prateek Sharma and Microsoft leader Eric Horvitz discuss the impact of AI in healthcare
Dr. Sharma shared real-world examples of how AI is already transforming gastroenterology, from computer-aided detection (CADe) and diagnosis (CADx) in endoscopy to workflow optimisation and predictive modelling. He emphasised that the speciality is entering a point where AI reduces documentation burden, scheduling tools improve clinic flow, and how digital twins may one day enable real-time coaching during procedures.
Dr. Horvitz, who leads Microsoft's health and AI initiatives, discussed broader trends in the field, highlighting AI's growing role in early disease detection and clinical decision support. He emphasised that AI systems should assist rather than replace human intelligence, serving as tools that support, not override, clinical judgment.
Both speakers underscored the importance of thoughtful, clinically grounded progress.
He also touched on the need for explainable AI, stating that systems must be transparent and trustworthy if they are to be safely adopted into practice. Both speakers acknowledged that as AI capabilities accelerate, so do challenges facing their integration into clinical practice. Dr. Sharma emphasis
ed the importance of clinical validation, integration across platforms, and policy reform. Dr. Horvitz echoed his concerns, along with the need for ethical guardrails that evolve alongside the technology. Dr. Sharma emphasized that tomorrow's clinicians must be fluent in AI.
'AI won't replace you, but a gastroenterologist who knows how to use AI might', he said. Both leaders agreed that training must include interdisciplinary learning to responsibly evaluate and deploy AI tools. Dr. Horvitz added that doctors must be involved from day one in AI development to ensure these tools are clinically relevant and usable for patient needs.
As AI continues to advance, both speakers underscored the importance of thoughtful, clinically grounded progress. They encouraged healthcare professionals to stay informed, engage with new technologies, and contribute their perspectives to ensure AI evolves in ways that serve patients, providers, and the healthcare system. The conversation made clear that shaping the future of AI in medicine is not just a technical challenge, but a clinical responsibility.
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