Event programme: AI in the NHS 2026

Welcome and introduction 
Dr Hugh Alderwick, Director of Policy and Research, The Health Foundation.

Keynote address
The emerging challenges presented by AI and how different health systems are responding. 
Dr Ricardo Baptista Leite, CEO, HealthAI

As healthcare systems scramble to react to the ever-evolving AI landscape, tough questions remain about the most practical next steps. This session will explore how AI could most effectively benefit patients and healthcare professionals, what safety issues need to be prioritised and how to ensure any benefits are actually sustainable.

Speakers:

• Dr Joseph Alderman, Postdoctoral Researcher in AI and Digital Health, University of Birmingham

• Brian Anderson, Chief Executive, Coalition for Health AI (CHAI)

• Madhumita Murgia, AI Editor, Financial Times

• Anna Thomas, Founding Director, Institute for the Future of Work

Chair: 

Tim Horton, Deputy Director, Health and Care Policy, The Health Foundation

With an ever-increasing number of AI tools entering the healthcare market, we need to ascertain which ones are actually safe and beneficial. Evaluations are often slow and costly and new AI tools often lack robust support from independent evidence. This panel will explore how we can develop new approaches to effectively evaluate AI. 

Speakers:

• Mary Dixon-Woods, Director of The Healthcare Improvement Studies (THIS) Institute

• Ed Middleton, Interim Director of Strategy, MHRA

• Saira Ghafur, Digital Health Lead at the Institute of Global Health Innovation, Imperial and Co-Founder & CMO, Prova Health

Chair: 

Dr Jennifer Dixon DBE, Chief Executive, The Health Foundation

Across the world, a small number of healthcare systems have managed to move beyond pilots and promises to embed AI into service delivery. But what does it mean to be truly ‘AI-enabled’ and how do we get there in practice? In this session, panellists from healthcare systems at the frontier of AI adoption will explore what lessons the NHS could take from their experiences.  

Speakers:

• Bob Klaber, Director of Strategy, Research & Innovation, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust 

• Wonchul Cha, Chief Information Officer, Samsung Medical Centre, Korea 

• Micky Tripathi, Chief AI Implementation Officer, Mayo Clinic 

• Davina Lim, Director, Future Systems & Innovation, Ministry of Health, Singapore 

Chair: 

Alex Lawrence, Improvement Fellow, The Health Foundation

Final keynote address
Speaker tbc

Closing comments
Dr Jennifer Dixon DBE, Chief Executive, The Health Foundation