Space travelers, robots and, of course, artificial intelligence.
They were all on display on Tuesday at Epic Systems' annual Users Group Meeting, held at the health software giant's 1,670-acre campus in Verona, Wisconsin.
Judy Faulkner, Epic's 82-year-old CEO, dressed for the occasion in a purple wig with neon green shoes and an iridescent vest, reminiscent of the fictional character Buzz Lightyear from the "Toy Story" franchise.
At the science fiction-themed event, Faulkner told the crowd that Epic has roughly 200 different AI features in development that aim to assist patients, clinicians and insurers.
"We are combining the intelligence and curiosity of the human being with the investigative capabilities of gen AI," Faulkner said, in front of thousands of health-care executives packed into an 11,400-seat underground auditorium.
Epic, one of the largest private technology companies in the country, is best known for its electronic health record, or EHR, software. An EHR is a digital version of a patient's medical history that's updated by doctors and nurses, and the technology is integral to the modern U.S. health-care system.
Epic's software, which competes with Oracle Health (formerly Cerner), is used by 280 million Americans, according to the company. Many patients know of Epic because of its user portal called MyChart.
Last week, Epic announced MyChart Central, which will allow patients to log in to MyChart with just one set of credentials, rather than needing a username and password for each health system they visit. It's equally helpful for health-care organizations, Faulkner said.
"You'll spend less time handling patient calls and resetting passwords," she said in her keynote on Tuesday. "Demographic changes like address need to be added only once."
A new addition to the MyChart portal is the always-on Emmie assistant, which the company said will be able to answer questions about lab results, propose appointment times and suggest relevant screenings that patients can discuss with their doctor.
During Epic's three-hour presentation, Faulkner and other executives introduced Emmie as well as other AI assistants the company calls Art and Penny, highlighting new capabilities that are coming in the next year and beyond.