Good morning. What is the state of U.S. business? It depends on where you are and what you’re doing. Earlier this week, I was in San Francisco, discussing the dividends of artificial intelligence with a dozen CEOs of major hospital systems at a dinner sponsored by Philips. If you’re Suresh Gunasekaran at UCSF Health, an institution consistently ranked among the best in the world for health outcomes and medical research, artificial intelligence is being integrated into a more seamless patient experience. “In the age of artificial intelligence, being a medical student, a pharmacy student, a nurse is no longer the same,” Gunasekaran said.
Artificial intelligence may be less ubiquitous but no less powerful, said Providence CEO Erik Wexler, who faces staff shortages, rising costs and reduced Medicaid payments at 51 hospitals and 1,000 clinics spread across seven states with varying regulatory environments. Reaction to ambient technology that works based on insights gleaned from doctor-patient conversations? “This is life-changing technology,” Wexler told me. “When the doctor says that, you feel like you’ve discovered plutonium.”
While many Americans may be worried about the impact of AI on their jobs, many welcome the prospect of AI lowering the average $17,000 cost of health care, which is expected to account for nearly 19% of U.S. GDP this year.
Suzanne P. Clark, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, noted in her report that Americans’ difficulties in affording and accessing health care are two long-standing problems 2026 State of American Business Speech in an upbeat speech yesterday. She responded to the 250th The anniversary year and the last time the United States celebrated a birthday was 1976. In addition to fond memories of waving tiny flags in the Englewood, Ohio, Bicentennial Parade, she recalls the gloom brought about by 5.7 percent inflation, 7.7 percent unemployment, soaring energy costs, rising crime, stagnant productivity and an “expanding regulatory state”—not to mention Cold War fears of nuclear annihilation.
Fast forward to today, she says, and there’s a tripling of GDP, a homegrown energy revolution, a 40% increase in median household income and, of course, several waves of transformative technology. Clark’s lesson? “Despite all the challenges we face, we live in a time of abundance and progress,” she said. “America is very good at getting better.”
In the age of artificial intelligence, the question facing business leaders is how to accelerate adoption and transformation while controlling costs. 2026 could be the year the focus turns to results. As Jeff DiLullo, chief region leader for Philips North America, advised health system leaders at our dinner: “AI must either increase access to care, improve quality and outcomes, or reduce staff burden. If it can’t do those things, then don’t do it.”
Contact CEO Daily via Diane Brady: dianebrady@fortune.com
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CEO Daily is compiled and edited by Joey Abrams, Claire Zillman and Lee Clifford.