The State of AI in Healthcare Marketing
One Hundred Agencies, One Clear Pattern
In case you missed it, today Eversana announced that they’ve launched a full-scale, 80% AI-powered healthcare marketing agency, built on Google Cloud, powered by Gemini, and staffed by what they called an “agentic army” of autonomous brand strategists, content creators, and omnichannel engagers. GASP! What does this mean for the future of healthcare marketing agencies? Is this but the first domino to fall, or something that will get lost in the August news cycle heatwave of tariff turmoil, rockstar deaths (R.I.P. Ozzy), flash floods and Sydney Sweeny backlash?
As groundbreaking as Eversana’s move is, it’s also just one data point in a potentially much bigger pattern of how the healthcare marketing agency world is adopting AI. For answers, I turned to the MM&M Agency 100, the annual roll call of the industry’s largest and most influential healthcare marketing agencies, and did a deep dive into how they describe their AI perspectives, adoption and product offerings. Spoiler alert: The results weren’t what the sizzle reels would lead you to believe.
Healthcare Agency AI By the Numbers
Of the top 100 agencies reviewed:
81% of agencies mention AI in their profile
42% describe a specific tool or offering
35% mention proprietary platforms or solutions
Translation? Nearly everyone is talking about AI, but few are building it. Even fewer are scaling it. And hardly anyone has turned it into a business model…yet.
[One massive caveat here, this is all based on messaging shared in the agencies’ “Agency 100” profile, where they could choose not to discuss AI, or keep their work close to their collective vests. However, having participated in these MM&M agency interviews in the past, it’s generally wise to follow the age-old adage, “if you’ve got it, flaunt it.”]
Riding the AI Adoption Curve
As we observed with the digital and social eras of marketing and agency transformation, it’s common for organizations large and small to follow an adoption curve that ranges from discovery and experimentation to integration and productization. If healthcare agencies are writing the story of AI, most busy authoring Chapter One.
Life on the early side of AI-adoption sounds like this sentiment from Patients & Purpose, “we’ve chosen to be methodical about how we look at piloting, learning and understanding. There’s a big misconception out there that all of a sudden AI’s going to make everything easier, better, cheaper, whatever.” But this is a stark contrast to those seemingly further along the curve, who provide more concrete examples. Deloitte Digital’s Creativ-Edge is “a production-ready generative AI solution for customized, on-brand content creation,” or Klick’s Guardrail platform for compliance automation, “automatically analyzes submissions and layers in a client’s compliance posture and history to automate the entire approval workflow for assets.”
Interpreting the Agency AI Narrative
A thorough analysis of these profiles reveals three major themes surrounding AI adoption at an agency level:
1. Human + AI > AI Alone
AI is not replacing us. It’s enhancing us.
This is the most dominant (and safest) storyline. Agencies repeatedly emphasize that AI is here to augment human creativity, support strategic thinking, and free up teams to focus on high-value tasks. It’s part reassurance, part positioning, and nearly every agency uses this to signal responsible adoption without alarming clients or staff (or threatening T&M models).
“GenAI has the ability to provide those hyper-personalized experiences—but only when guided by real human empathy.” (Havas Lynx)
“We’re innovating ways to empower our teams with AI, not override them.” (Precision AQ)
2. AI as a Force Multiplier for Efficiency
AI helps us move faster, cheaper, and smarter.
This is the most actionable and ROI-focused narrative. Agencies frame AI as a productivity engine—streamlining content production, automating compliance workflows, optimizing media planning, and scaling personalization.
“We use AI to streamline omnichannel campaigns and reduce lag time in campaign launches.” (CMI Media Group & Compass)
“Accenture Song has also helped on the AI front by integrating technology that cuts down time and improves decision-making.” (ConcentricLife)
3. AI as Creative Co-Pilot
AI is the muse, not just the machine.
More forward-looking agencies are beginning to embrace AI not just as a production tool, but as a creative partner—helping generate concepts, draft ideas, build mood boards, and spark unexpected directions in brand storytelling.
“Sound supported several product launches with prototype concepts built using AI to visualize new campaign directions before creative production.” (Sound Healthcare Communications)
“We’re arming our creative, strategy and medical teams with tools that help them get to the insights and campaign ideas a little faster.” (Lucid)
Agency AI Offering Categories
Reviewing the more specific AI offerings referenced in profiles, these naturally sort into core categories that address client needs and agency capabilities:
| Category | Description | Example Agencies |
|---|---|---|
| Content Generation | Tools to automate or enhance copy, creative, or production | Deloitte Digital, IPG Health |
| Media Optimization | AI used to improve media targeting, buying, or placement | Publicis Health Media, Klick Health |
| Clinical Applications | AI for diagnostics, real-world data, treatment gap analysis | Area 23, Real Chemistry |
| AI Infrastructure / Platform | Proprietary engines, ecosystems, or operating systems for AI | Deloitte, Eversana, VML Health, TCS Interactive |
| Customer Experience / Personalization | Tools for tailored communication and experience orchestration | Inizio Evoke, Evoke Mind+Matter |
| Data & Insights | Tools focused on analytics, insight mining, and trend detection | Syneos Health, 21GRAMS |
Who’s Leading the Agency AI Revolution?
A few agencies stand out with regard to their commitment to AI:
Deloitte Digital is building with Creativ-Edge, a tool that personalizes content at scale
Klick has Guardrail, an AI platform for compliance review and content optimization
Area 23 is integrating AI into real-world data and clinical insights—not just content
And yes—Eversana was already a stand-out with their Orchestrate platform. Now it’s become the engine of an entirely new AI agency.
The examples above aren’t pilots but productized platforms. That’s a distinction that matters.
Take for example IPG Health’s EPICC (Enhanced Platform for Intelligent Content Creation) platform that stands out for its broad deployment across multiple agencies (Neon, FCBCure, Mosaic Group, Humancare). While the core tech is shared, each agency frames it differently—some as a creative accelerator, others as a data-driven engine or an empathy-enhancing tool. This suggests that winning the AI marathon won’t come from using AI—it will come from how it's branded, integrated, and scaled across the business. This can send a powerful signal to clients looking to partner with innovative agencies who can evolve with their business and brands:
Shared IP, tailored narrative: While EPICC is a common platform, each agency builds a slightly different story around it—whether it's speed (FCBCure), integration (Mosaic), empathy (Humancare), or daily utility (Neon).
Network strength: IPG Health’s ability to deploy and adapt a proprietary AI platform across multiple brands gives it a serious leg up in scalability and consistency.
Message discipline with flexibility: The core promise of EPICC (intelligent content at scale) remains intact—but each agency aligns the pitch to their unique DNA.
The Emerging Blueprint for AI-Enabled Agencies
The AI adoption race in healthcare communications is well underway, but it’s not the flashiest tools that will necessarily win. It’s the agencies building long-term infrastructure, embedding AI into their operational DNA, and translating capabilities into consistent client value.
The data pulled from Agency 100 profiles tells a clear story: while many agencies are experimenting with AI, only a handful are executing with clarity, consistency, and scale. These frontrunners are productizing, branding, and positioning AI as a strategic advantage.
The agencies best positioned to “win” are those treating AI like a new operating system, not a new intern. They’re building tools that scale with sophistication, not just speed and they’re rewriting their go-to-market model around it. The Eversana announcement is significant because of the signal it sends:
The agency model itself is evolving from service providers to systems integrators. From creative boutiques to intelligence engines.
In that shift, AI is no longer a “value add.” It’s a new value chain.
In the years ahead, expect to see a growing divide between agencies that merely pilot AI tools and those who operationalize them to transform workflows, content strategy, and client outcomes. The winners of the AI era in healthcare won't be defined by hype but by the ability to turn intelligence into impact.
In the next chapter of healthcare marketing, AI isn’t a trend, it’s a threshold. And there will come a time in the future when if you haven’t crossed it, you run the risk of becoming obsolete, or even worse, extinct.
