Tech giant Microsoft has launched a new AI product—a voice-activated AI assistant that would assist healthcare workers perform their professional duties more efficiently. The tool has been named Dragon Copilot and is designed to listen to and create notes based on clinical visits.  

The system has incorporated voice-dictation capabilities from Dragon Medical One, a speech-recognition solution, and DAX Copilot, an ambient-listening technology, developed by Nuance, an AI voice company, which Microsoft acquired in 2021.  

Microsoft announcement 

According to Microsoft’s announcement, the AI tool can help its users streamline their documentation needs through features such as multilanguage ambient note creation and natural language dictation. It also offers general-purpose medical information searched from trusted content sources. The AI feature possesses the ability to automate tasks such as conversational orders, clinical evidence summaries, referral letters and after-visit reports.

The goal of building the AI tool is to free clinicians from the administrative burden of healthcare, such that they can clearly focus on providing higher quality of healthcare to patients. The demand for generative AI tools in the healthcare industry is driven by the need to streamline administrative tasks, improve efficiency, and combat burnout among clinicians. 

Survey attests to Microsoft AI tool's effectiveness

Microsoft said its own surveys attest to the effectiveness of the tool in helping reduce physicians’ burnout. According to Microsoft, clinicians who have used Nuance suffered less burnout and that 93% of their patients reported a better overall experience.

“Through this technology, clinicians will have the ability to focus on the patient rather than the computer, and this is going to lead to better outcomes and ultimately better healthcare for all,” Dr David Rhew, global chief medical officer at Microsoft, said.

Microsoft said it is “committed to developing responsible AI by design” and that Dragon Copilot’s “capabilities are built on a secure data estate and incorporate healthcare-specific clinical, chat and compliance safeguards for accurate and safe AI outputs.”

Satya Nadella, CEO, Microsoft offered a compelling rationale for the tool: “No one becomes a clinician to do paperwork… That’s why we’re introducing Microsoft Dragon Copilot, the industry’s first AI assistant for clinical workflow.”

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