Rohan Kulkarni, HFS 00:34

So before I introduce Julie, I need your help. Raise your hand if any one of you in this room has directly influenced an AI decision in the last 12 months. All right. Keep your hand up if you can describe the outcomes in 30 seconds or less. Please. Thank you. So I am pleased and it's a privilege of HFS to have Julie Durham here with us. She is the CIO of Optum Insight and Applied AI at UnitedHealth. For those of you who do not know about UnitedHealth, they are a Fortune 3 company, the world's largest healthcare company. So a bellwether in so many ways, not only just healthcare, but all of the technology that they're enabling in order to facilitate better health outcomes. So Julie, welcome.

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 01:29

Thank you.

Rohan Kulkarni, HFS 01:30

So we've got a bunch of questions, but we'll try and engage with you folks as we go along. But I really want to ask Julie about the AI journey at UnitedHealth Group, and what were the core problems you were initially trying to solve for?

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 01:43

One, just thank you, I'm so excited for this. I think one of the things I love about being at UnitedHealth Group is whether you use their services or not, all of us at some point rely on the U.S. healthcare system. That makes it meaningful work every day. Let me start with context on UHG. Healthcare splits into two parts: care and coverage. Coverage is UnitedHealthcare—the insurance side. Care is Optum, which delivers services and care capabilities. Together, we aim to create a more integrated healthcare system.

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 02:40

On the care side, Optum includes pharmacy benefits (Optum RX), care delivery (Optum Health), financial services (Optum Financial), and Optum Insight—where I sit—which commercializes solutions built across the organization. UHG is about $430 billion in revenue, with around 450,000 employees globally. I also lead Applied AI, which coordinates AI strategy across the organization.

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 04:20

AI is not new to healthcare, but what’s changed is the scale, accessibility, and speed of innovation. Initially, we focused on three areas: claims automation, consumer experience, and care delivery. Like most organizations, we started by accelerating known processes using AI.

Rohan Kulkarni, HFS 07:07

Given the complexity of your business, what kept you awake at night when deciding where to focus?

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 07:34

Prioritization is always hard because healthcare presents endless opportunities. A turning point came when we realized how conversational AI could change everything. For example, when we added LLMs to explain benefits documents, we moved from static interfaces to dynamic conversations. That shift signaled a new paradigm.

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 09:10

We redirected investments into conversational interfaces—chat and voice—while ensuring safety and compliance. Working in healthcare means navigating strict regulations, but we also discovered that patients were more open and honest in digital interactions, providing insights we previously missed.

Rohan Kulkarni, HFS 11:29

What outcomes are you seeing now, especially for members?

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 11:45

We’re seeing three layers of impact. First is empowering employees with AI tools—democratizing access beyond IT teams. Second is optimizing existing processes like prior authorizations and customer service. Third is reimagining healthcare entirely.

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 13:05

One key realization is that employee productivity gains can be massive. The challenge is balancing whether to optimize current processes or leap directly into new models. My view is to let AI run today’s system so we can build the next one.

Rohan Kulkarni, HFS 15:36

What advice would you give leaders across industries?

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 15:57

First, it’s still early—don’t feel like you’re too far behind. Second, AI adoption won’t follow traditional curves. Focus on productivity gains, not just cost savings. And look for signals—both from employees and customers—that reveal transformative opportunities.

Rohan Kulkarni, HFS 18:17

Let’s engage the audience. Who is using AI to improve a colleague’s experience?

Audience Member, Russ 18:40

We standardized go-to-market planning with AI but require teams to define clear objectives to avoid blind automation.

Audience Member 19:05

We helped a client change their industry’s competitive dynamics, improving market share and EBITDA.

Rohan Kulkarni, HFS 19:16

Julie, what lessons have emerged, and what might healthcare look like in a year?

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 19:43

We’ve seen a 300% increase in AI initiatives year over year. One major shift will be reducing friction in processes like prior authorizations. AI will make these processes seamless, similar to how payments work behind the scenes today.

Rohan Kulkarni, HFS 21:35

Rapid fire: one AI tool you use daily that isn’t ChatGPT?

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 21:51

Claude. I use it extensively in my personal life as well. It helps manage tasks and coordinate family activities—almost like a digital assistant embedded into daily life.

Rohan Kulkarni, HFS 23:03

Leaders who win with AI in 2027 will be those who?

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 23:12

Are adaptable. This technology forces constant change. Also, trust your employees—empowered teams can innovate far more quickly. At the same time, watch for burnout, as people can become hyper-engaged and struggle to disconnect.

Rohan Kulkarni, HFS 25:18

I wish we could continue, but we’re out of time. Thank you for joining us.

Julie Durham, UnitedHealth Group 25:26

Thank you.