The AI Hype Filter
Five red flags in AI vendor pitches, and the one question that exposes each. Keep it handy for the next booth or sales call that says “AI-powered.”
“Fully autonomous. No human oversight needed.”
It sounds like a feature, but it's the risky part. Anything that reaches a patient or a payer should have a person approving it first.
Ask: “Where does a person approve it before it goes out?”
“We're HIPAA certified.”
There's no such thing as HIPAA certification; the government doesn't issue one. What matters is whether they'll sign a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) and take on legal responsibility for your patients' data.
Ask: “Where's the signed BAA?”
“Don't worry, your data's safe with us.”
That's a reassurance, not an answer. A vendor who takes security seriously can tell you where your patient data is stored, who can see it, how long they keep it, and whether it trains their AI. Real-looking patient records in their demo are a tell, too.
Ask: “Where does our data live, and is it used to train your AI?”
“Our AI diagnoses and recommends treatment.”
Some imaging tools are FDA-cleared to help a dentist spot things, and those can be legitimate. The red flag is software that claims to make the diagnosis on its own.
Ask: “Is it FDA-cleared for exactly this, and does the dentist make the call?”
“Now with AI!”
Often it's the software you already use, with a new label and a higher price.
Ask: “What does it do today that last year's version couldn't?”
Climb one rung at a time.
- 1
Zero risk, internal only
No patient data at all. Use a general AI chat tool to draft a job post, an office policy, a training checklist, or a reply to a vendor.
- 2
Drafts a person reviews
Appeal letters, recall messages, post-op instructions. AI writes the first draft; your team edits and sends it. Once patient data is involved, only use tools whose vendor will sign a BAA.
- 3
Supervised automation
Runs on its own, on a schedule, but still waits for a person to say yes before anything goes out.
Pick one workflow. Measure one number.
Denials: hours per week your team spends on appeals. Recall: overdue patients who actually booked this month. Phones: calls that went to voicemail. Write the number down before you start, and check it again in 30 days. If it didn't move, the tool didn't earn its place.
Got one annoying workflow?
Bring it to a free 20-minute call. You'll get an honest answer on whether AI actually helps, and sometimes the honest answer is no.
Book a free 20-minute callTip: print this page or save it as a PDF (⌘P / Ctrl+P).