Digital health and AI conference 2026 (in-person)

AI and digital technologies are already reshaping health and social care. Across the NHS and local services, AI tools are being developed, tested and used in areas such as imaging, triage, risk prediction and workforce support, yet the pace of change can make it hard to understand what is working, what is still early‑stage, and what it means for people using services.

The NHS 10 Year Health Plan aspires to a future where AI is seamlessly integrated into most clinical pathways and the Medium Term Planning Framework reinforces its focus on accelerating implementation, scaling and national roll out of digital technologies. Achieving this requires attention to the practicalities of implementation and scale, not just pilots or technical breakthroughs, and services designed with people and communities at their heart.

Although there are promising examples of AI improving care and easing pressure on staff, progress is uneven. Many parts of the system continue to struggle with basic infrastructure challenges unreliable devices, unstable connectivity and fragmented data - that hold back the potential for AI to improve health and care services. As our work on digital inclusion outlines, for digital services to be truly inclusive, they must also serve the populations they are designed for, work as expected and be trusted by both users and staff.

This year’s Digital Health & AI Conference will cut through the noise to explore what it really takes to build an AI‑enabled health and care system that works for people - grounded in evidence, lived experience and the realities of the health and care system today. We’ll examine where AI and digital technologies are already adding value, where they are falling short, and what needs to change in leadership, culture, infrastructure and practice to unlock meaningful and sustained impact. Through case studies, discussion and hands‑on collaborative sessions, you’ll hear from those implementing AI today, and explore what trusted, inclusive and effective digital journeys could look like in the future.

Across the day, we’ll dive into these themes through a series of sessions spanning our People First, Collaborate & Learn and Innovate streams including:

• Digital health and AI in 2026: what’s real, what’s next and what’s at stake
• The NHS App - the new digital front door to the NHS?
• Leading digital and AI change in constrained and complex systems
• Builders and backers - innovators, founders and investors in conversation
• The future workforce in a world of chatbots and AI
• Consumer AI: The algorithm will see you now
• Ambient voice technology in practice
• Hack the future - a mini hackathon on real‑world challenges
• How bold is bold enough? Can the UK lead on safe, inclusive health AI?

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher The King's Fund