This week on Pulse: Hot Topics, Louise and George cover a fortnight that captured the whole spectrum of digital health in 2026 — political turmoil at the top, consumer tech-led disruption from below, and an expert call for responsible AI delivery in the middle.

UK Health Secretary Resigns as Palantir Contract Unravels — Wes Streeting resigns; James Murray becomes the 9th UK Health Secretary in 8 years; the £330M NHS Federated Data Platform faces a break clause as workforce, MPs and unions revolt. Reports emerge of Palantir staff being granted "unlimited access" to identifiable patient data, while the NHS Analysts Together collective launches an open letter calling for the contract to end.

The Wearable Category Just Split Three Ways — Google retires Fitbit, launches Google Health with a Gemini-powered AI Coach and the $99 Fitbit Air, cross-platform with Apple HealthKit. One day later, WHOOP launches live clinician video consultations and EHR integration via HealthEx, backed by Mayo Clinic and Abbott. Meanwhile Oura quietly acquires Galen AI to build a longitudinal health operating system. Three completely different theories of where value sits in wearable health.

Responsible AI UK: The Delivery Playbook — A BMJ Digital Health editorial from RAi UK sets out four priorities for execution: infrastructure and open standards, problem-focused innovation, holistic evaluation, and workforce capability. Essentially the operating manual the new UK Health Secretary should be reading tonight.

Resources:

Stryker Vocera's Initial Delays Diagnosis Quiz Link

Responsible AI UK, BMJ Digital Health& AI Link

Digital Health Workforce Census (opens 1 May, ANZ) Link

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Welcome to Pulse: Amplify, where we sit down with the leaders and changemakers shaping the future of health.

At the recent ITAC Conference in Brisbane, one keynote stopped the room.

While most AI presentations focus on efficiency, automation and productivity, Scottish Care CEO Dr Donald Macaskill delivered something very different: a deeply human conversation about dignity, autonomy, storytelling, privacy and what healthcare risks losing in the race toward artificial intelligence.

In this episode of Pulse, Louise and George sit down with Donald to unpack Scotland’s ethical and human rights-based approach to AI in aged care — and why he believes AI is not inevitable, but a choice.

The conversation explores:

• the shift from person-centred to person-led care,
• why current AI systems often fail to reflect the lived experience of ageing,
• the risks of surveillance and opaque decision-making in care environments,
• how Scotland is using co-design and human rights frameworks to shape AI adoption,
• and why technology should enhance — never replace — human presence and relationships.

Donald also shares practical lessons from Scottish initiatives including the Oxford Institute for Ethics in AI and the Coorie Well project, where residents, families and frontline staff helped shape AI tools from the ground up.

And in a memorable closing exchange, Donald reflects on the one thing machines may never truly understand about care: laughter.

A thoughtful, philosophical and surprisingly funny conversation about what it means to “hold fast” to humanity in the age of AI.

Connect with Donald on LinkedIn

Stryker Vocera's Initial Delays Diagnosis Quiz Link

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Production by Octopod Productions | Ivan Juric

This week on Pulse: Hot Topics, Louise and George dive into the major developments shaping the future of healthcare.

Tech giants Google and OpenAI release purpose-built clinician AI tools; a landmark Science paper and commentary on the clinical reasoning capabilities of AI; Eric Topol calls out the paradox at the heart of medical AI; and OpenEvidence, the most-used clinical AI platform in the US walks out of Europe.

Resources:

Brodeur et al. Science paper Link

Hopkins & Cornelisse commentary, Science Link

Eric Topol, The Paradox of Medical AI Implementation Link

Digital Health Workforce Census (opens 1 May, ANZ) Link

Visit Pulse+IT.news to subscribe to breaking digital news, weekly newsletters and a rich treasure trove of archival material. People in the know, get their news from Pulse+IT – Your leading voice in digital health news.

Follow us on LinkedIn Louise | George | Pulse+IT

Follow us on BlueSky Louise | George | Pulse+IT

Send us your questions pulsepod@pulseit.news

Production by Octopod Productions | Ivan Juric