RFK Jr.'s embrace of AI confounds some MAHA allies and medical experts

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s unexpected embrace of artificial intelligence has rankled some of his allies in the “Make America Healthy Again” movement

WASHINGTON -- Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has built a national following by channeling the energy of Americans who are worried about the influence of corporations, including makers of vaccines, drugs, processed foodsand pesticides.

At a MAHA summit featuring AI and Silicon Valley executives, Kennedy declared that the technology would free Americans from “medical tyranny” by allowing them to “fact check their own medical advice.”

Some prominent MAHA voices quickly criticized Kennedy’s embrace of AI, saying the movement's leaders are increasingly cozying up to the corporate interests they once scrutinized.

At the same time, medical experts say Kennedy’s vision of AI as a check against the medical establishment is fundamentally flawed.

Both OpenAI and Anthropic offer health-focused chatbots that can analyze users' medical records and answer their healthcare questions. Their models are trained on thousands of peer-reviewed medical papers and professional guidelines and incorporate feedback from doctors.

HHS spokesperson Emily Hilliard said Emanuel was describing “one narrow use” of the technology.

Kennedy wants to give Americans more control of their own health data by using AI “to help them understand it, interrogate it, compare it with the evidence, and make better decisions with their doctors,” Hilliard said. The technology will help doctors work faster, giving them “more time to treat and care for patients,” she added.

Sponsors paid up to $300,000 and many received speaking slots on panels that included some of the administration’s top health officials, including Dr. Mehmet Oz of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Malone and other figures in the MAHA movement say the summit showed how big companies are replacing the “MAHA moms” and other grassroots activists who originally powered the movement.

“There was no representation of people that have been at the core of MAHA and its creation, whether it be physicians or patients or patient advocates,” Malone said.

Tony Lyons, a publisher who runs the MAHA Center, MAHA PAC and several related groups, addressed criticisms about corporate sponsorships at a reception ahead of the summit.