The rapid integration of artificial intelligence into healthcare and daily life has the potential to deeply impact people's health and wellbeing, bringing health benefits but also introducing new challenges. Artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed healthcare by supporting clinicians in improving diagnostics, predicting health risks, and personalising treatments, particularly in fields such as radiology, oncology, cardiology, and rare diseases, as well as streamlining hospital management. It offers opportunities to make healthcare more effective, more accessible for all, with better outcomes for patients and national health systems. It also supports pharmaceutical development. Beyond clinical settings, AI chatbots and virtual assistants are widely used by citizens for health information and wellness advice, although these carry risks of misinformation and over-reliance. While AI offers benefits for vulnerable groups such as older adults, young people, and children, it also carries age-specific risks that require careful attention. For older adults, AI offers remote monitoring, assistive technologies, and companionship tools, but risks replacing rather than complementing human interaction. Young people and children using AI face serious risks including exposure to harmful content, emotional dependency, privacy violations, and reduced critical thinking. Across all age groups, excessive or poorly designed AI use is linked to anxiety, sleep disorders, sedentary behaviour, and social withdrawal. Designed to improve wellbeing and address loneliness, use of AI companions can backfire, potentially deepening isolation or even triggering mental health crises in vulnerable users. The EU AI Act and sector-specific legislation aim to govern these risks while fostering innovation. Realising AI's health benefits ultimately requires robust human oversight, strong safeguards, and digital skills, with a clear commitment to keeping human connection and care at the centre, as AI cannot replace face-to-face contact and community structures. Source : © European Union, 2026 - EP Read more