The New Front Door to Healthcare: How Consumers Are Using AI

For many consumers, looking up health information involves Chatbots. These consumers are using new AI tools to understand symptoms, learn about treatments, and prepare for conversations with their doctors.

ThinkNow’s latest AI in Healthcare report examines how Hispanic, Black, Asian, and White consumers are using and evaluating AI for health decisions. A national survey of 1,548 U.S. adults shows that AI has become a meaningful source of health information for more and more Americans. The findings also show that AI adoption is moving faster than trust, though the degree of trust varies considerably across race, ethnicity, age, and gender.

Download the full report here.

AI Is Already Influencing Health Decisions

Our first finding shows that roughly 43% of adults say they have used an AI chatbot for a health question in the past year. Usage rises to 57% among Hispanic consumers and 54% among Asian consumers. Only 35% of Black consumers and 39% of White consumers report using AI chatbots for health research purposes.

Consumers are also doing more than gathering information. Among those who have used AI for health questions, 60% say it prompted a doctor’s visit they would not have made, while 65% say it led them to ask a doctor about medication or treatment by name. The most interesting implication of these findings is that AI is now becoming an increasingly important entry point into the healthcare system.

Trust Still Depends on the Source

However, doctors and healthcare providers remain the most trusted source at 81%, followed by pharmacists at 70%.; only 40% of consumers trust AI chatbots for health information. At the same time, this level of trust carries over to AI tools. Sixty percent of consumers say they would trust an AI health tool offered by their doctor or health system, compared with 34% who would trust one from a large technology company. For healthcare organizations, the credibility of the provider matters more than the novelty of the technology. Consumers are more receptive when AI supports an established healthcare relationship rather than attempting to replace it.

Multicultural Consumers Are Leading Adoption

Interestingly, multicultural consumers are leading the way in AI adoption for healthcare. Hispanic and Asian consumers report some of the highest levels of AI familiarity, health-related usage, trust, and interest in future tools and Hispanic consumers are especially likely to say AI prompted a doctor visit or led them to ask about a treatment. Asian consumers show strong interest in using AI to understand symptoms and seek second opinions.

Language access is another significant advantage for multicultural users. More than half of Hispanic consumers (53%) have used AI to obtain health information in Spanish or another preferred language, while 41% of Asian consumers have used it in a heritage language. Nearly half of Asian consumers (47%) agree that AI provided heritage-language health information they could not easily find elsewhere. This is a practical benefit for consumers navigating complex information across languages, not simply an added feature.

Adoption Gaps Point to Different Needs

AI usage, though increasingly widespread, is still not universal. Women trail men in AI health usage and trust, even though women who use AI are more likely to rely on it to prepare questions for a visit or decide whether to see a doctor. Black consumers report lower usage overall, and some non-users say they did not know AI could be used for health questions.

Adoption seems to be geared by purpose and trustworthiness. Women may respond to clearer evidence of safety and accuracy, while Black consumers may benefit from practical demonstrations of how AI can support, rather than substitute for, conversations with healthcare professionals.

What Healthcare Organizations Should Take from the Data

Overall, our research only solidifies what was already becoming evident: AI is becoming part of everyday life, including health.  AI increasingly informs how consumers research health concerns, evaluate options, and prepare to seek care. For healthcare organizations, the opportunity is not simply to introduce another digital tool. It is to offer useful guidance through sources consumers already trust connecting AI tools to doctors and health systems, providing strong language support, explaining how information is reviewed, and showing consumers where AI fits within the care process. Organizations that address these expectations will be better positioned to develop tools that consumers view as credible, accessible, and relevant.

Download the full report here.