The intersection of ethics and AI in healthtech marketing: Insights from ObvioHealth

Leslie Pascaud, chief marketing officer at ObvioHealth, believes the key to effective marketing remains grounded in three fundamentals: a compelling product, addressing genuine customer needs, and a distinct brand position. Yet, in today’s AI-enabled world, these basics must be adapted to leverage the latest technologies responsibly.

According to Pascaud, AI’s ability to personalize communication is revolutionizing patient interactions, much like how AI enhances personalized medicine.

“AI allows us to tailor patient communications in ways we couldn’t before, like remembering personal details or referring to prior conversations to put patients at ease,” she says. However, this personalization must be balanced with transparency and ethical considerations. “It’s essential that organizations ensure interactions stay on point and human oversight is in place to prevent issues,” she adds.

The role of transparency in AI-driven health tech marketing​

One of the greatest challenges for marketers promoting AI-powered health solutions is maintaining transparency. With AI tools advancing rapidly, the distinction between human and algorithm interactions is becoming blurred. While today’s bots often betray themselves through unnatural responses or incomplete profiles, Pascaud warns that it won’t be long before AI becomes indistinguishable from human users. "Companies must take responsibility for letting their audiences know when they are interacting with an algorithm," she stresses. In her view, this should be as straightforward as labeling sponsored content in advertising.

Pascaud also calls attention to the regulatory gaps between regions. In the U.S., regulations concerning AI transparency and accountability are still underdeveloped, especially compared to Europe’s AI Act. “While the AI Act in Europe provides a comprehensive legal framework with rules around data quality, transparency, and accountability, U.S. companies are left to define their own policies in the short term,” she explains. To stay ahead of this curve, health tech companies must proactively define their AI policies and educate their audiences about the benefits and risks of AI.

Ethical challenges in AI implementation: Access, bias, and accountability​

Pascaud identifies three key ethical challenges in AI implementation: access, bias, and accountability. First, access to AI is limited by the need for substantial computational power, which creates barriers for smaller health tech companies. Larger organizations with more resources have a clear advantage. Pascaud suggests that collaboration, like the recent partnership between ConcertAI and Nvidia, could be a way to democratize AI access by pooling resources and expertise. “We need more partnerships that allow smaller players to tap into the AI ecosystem without being left behind,” she emphasizes.

Bias in AI training models is another critical issue. Pascaud points to well-known examples of how biased data can negatively impact patient outcomes, such as the race adjustment in kidney function tests that delayed Black patients' eligibility for dialysis. “Bias in AI models can have serious consequences, especially in healthcare, where it can mean the difference between life and death,” Pascaud warns. Companies like Flatiron Health, she notes, are actively working to address this issue by integrating more diverse data sets, thereby reducing the risk of biased outcomes.

Finally, Pascaud highlights accountability as a major concern, particularly regarding the so-called ‘black box’ nature of AI. “Patients and providers are understandably wary of trusting algorithms to make critical health decisions when the underlying processes are opaque,” she says. AI may have the potential to reduce human error—such as the estimated 100,000 preventable deaths that occur each year in hospitals due to misdiagnoses or incomplete patient histories—but without transparency, that potential will be undermined by distrust. Pascaud calls for greater education and documentation of the data sets used by AI systems, so decisions can be fully traced and validated.

The competitive advantage of ethical marketing for smaller health tech companies​

For smaller health tech companies, ethical marketing is not just an obligation but an opportunity. Pascaud believes that these companies can leverage their more agile structures and purpose-driven missions to build trust and connect with customers on a deeper level. "Smaller companies often have authentic stories that differentiate them from big tech," Pascaud explains. In contrast to the sometimes-impersonal nature of larger corporations, these smaller firms can offer a ‘boutique’ experience, maintaining human touchpoints while supporting these interactions with AI-driven tools.

Pascaud underscores the importance of authenticity in messaging. “AI can be a great enabler by reminding patients to complete tasks or facilitating site staff outreach,” she says. But without the personal element, patients may feel alienated. Smaller companies, especially those founded by individuals with a genuine passion for improving health outcomes, can use their narrative to create stronger relationships with their patients.

Future trends in health tech marketing: Self-care and voice-activated technology

Looking forward, Pascaud identifies two major trends that will shape health tech marketing: the rise of self-care and the growing use of voice-activated technologies. With more patients taking charge of their own healthcare, marketers will need to adapt their messaging to be clearer, more personalized, and easier to understand. “We’ll see more marketing aimed at guiding patients through their health journeys, answering questions, and helping them make informed decisions,” Pascaud predicts.

Voice-activated devices are also set to play a larger role in healthcare. Pascaud cites studies showing that over half of people aged 25-40 use voice search features, a trend that will only increase over time. Marketers will need to adjust their strategies to reflect this shift, incorporating conversational language into their communications and optimizing for voice-based search queries.

In conclusion, Pascaud believes that AI offers immense potential to transform healthcare marketing, but only if it is deployed ethically and transparently. By addressing the challenges of access, bias, and accountability, and by focusing on building trust with their audiences, health tech companies can use AI to their advantage—both as a tool for better patient outcomes and as a competitive differentiator in a crowded market.