OpenAI has launched a new ChatGPT feature in the US that can analyse people’s medical records to deliver more personalised health-related answers, but privacy campaigners are already raising serious concerns.
The new tool, called ChatGPT Health, allows users to share medical records along with data from apps such as MyFitnessPal, which the system then uses to tailor its responses.
OpenAI says conversations within ChatGPT Health will be stored separately from other chats and will not be used to train its AI models. The company also stressed that the tool is not intended for “diagnosis or treatment.”
Andrew Crawford from the US non-profit Center for Democracy and Technology said it is “crucial” that “airtight” protections are in place when handling such sensitive information.
It remains unclear if or when ChatGPT Health will be made available in the UK.
“New AI health tools offer the promise of empowering patients and promoting better health outcomes,” Crawford said. “But health data is some of the most sensitive information people can share, and it must be protected.”
He added that AI companies are “leaning hard” into personalisation to increase the value of their services.
“Especially as OpenAI moves to explore advertising as a business model, it’s crucial that separation between this kind of health data and the memories ChatGPT captures from other conversations is airtight,” he said.
OpenAI says more than 230 million people already ask ChatGPT questions about health and wellbeing every week.
In a blog post, the company said ChatGPT Health includes “enhanced privacy to protect sensitive data.”
Users can upload medical records and connect data from apps such as Apple Health, Peloton, and MyFitnessPal to receive more relevant answers to their health questions.
OpenAI said the feature is designed to “support, not replace, medical care.”
‘A watershed moment’
Generative AI tools are known to sometimes produce false or misleading information, often presenting it confidently as fact.
But Max Sinclair, founder and CEO of AI marketing platform Azoma, said OpenAI is positioning ChatGPT as a “trusted medical adviser.”
He described the launch of ChatGPT Health as a “watershed moment” that could “reshape both patient care and retail,” influencing not only how people get medical information but also what products they choose to buy to address health issues.
Sinclair said the move could be a “game-changer” for OpenAI as competition intensifies from rivals like Google’s Gemini.
OpenAI said ChatGPT Health will initially be available to a “small group of early users” and has opened a waitlist for wider access.
The feature has not launched in the UK, Switzerland, or the European Economic Area, where strict data protection laws govern how companies can process personal health information.
In the US, however, Crawford warned that companies not covered by strong privacy regulations will be able to collect and use sensitive health data.
“Since it’s up to each company to decide how health data is collected, used, shared, and stored, weak protections can put people’s most sensitive health information in real danger,” he said.
