- In today’s CEO Daily: Diane Brady speaks with CEOs about the promise of AI in health care.
- The big story: The DOJ’s Fed probe is complicating the search for Powell’s successor.
- The markets: Mostly in the black globally.
- Plus: All the news and watercooler chat from Fortune.
Good morning. What is the state of U.S. business? It depends on where you are and what you do. I was in San Francisco earlier this week, debating the AI dividend with a dozen CEOs of major hospital systems at a dinner sponsored by Philips. If you’re Suresh Gunasekaran of UCSF Health, which consistently ranks among the world’s best in health outcomes and medical research, AI is becoming baked into a more seamless patient experience. “Being a medical student, a pharmacy student, a nurse is no longer the same in the age of AI,” Gunasekaran said.
For Providence CEO Erik Wexler, who faces staff shortages, rising costs and reduced Medicaid payments in 51 hospitals and 1,000 clinics spread across seven states with different regulatory environments, AI is perhaps less ubiquitous but equally powerful. The reaction to ambient technology that acts on insights gleaned from doctor-patient conversations? “This is life-changing technology,” Wexler told me. “When a physician says that, you feel like you’ve discovered plutonium.”
While many Americans may fear the impact of AI on their jobs, many welcome the prospect of it lowering their average $17,000 tab for health care, which is expected to account for almost 19% of U.S. GDP this year.
Americans’ struggle with affordability and access to health care are two persistent problems U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Suzanne P. Clark cited in her 2026 State of American Business remarks yesterday in an otherwise upbeat speech. She drew comparisons between this 250th anniversary year and the last time America had a big birthday in 1976. Along with fond memories of waving a little flag in the Englewood, Ohio, bicentennial parade, she recalled a dour mood shaped by 5.7% inflation, 7.7% unemployment, soaring energy costs, rising crime, stagnating productivity, and a “ballooning regulatory state”—not to mention fear of nuclear annihilation amid the Cold War.
Fast forward to today, she said, and there’s been a threefold increase in GDP, a homegrown energy revolution, a 40% rise in median household income and of course several waves of transformative technologies. The lesson for Clark? “Despite all of our challenges, we live in an era of abundance and advancement,” she said. “America is very good at getting better.”
In the AI age, the question for business leaders is how to accelerate adoption and transformation while keeping costs in check. 2026 may be the year where the focus shifts to outcomes. As Jeff DiLullo, chief region leader of Philips North America, advised health systems leaders at our dinner: “AI either has to increase access to care, increase the quality and the outcomes, or reduce staff burden. And if it can’t do those things, don’t do it.”
Contact CEO Daily via Diane Brady at diane.brady@fortune.com
Top news
Questions for the next Fed chair
The DOJ’s criminal probe into U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell has delayed the search for his successor by raising questions about the independence of the next chair and whether they’ll win Senate confirmation. Two Republican Senators have vowed to withhold any vote until the investigation is resolved. One person who will “absolutely, positively” not take the job is JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, an oft-rumored candidate. What about running the Treasury? “I would take the call,” he said in a new interview.
Ashley St. Clair sues xAI
The conservative influencer Ashley St. Clair, who had a child with Elon Musk, has sued his xAI firm in New York, seeking a restraining order to keep the chatbot Grok from undressing images of her. xAI has not commented on the filing, but has sued St. Clair in Texas for allegedly violating its terms with her lawsuit.
Trump targets power plants
The Trump administration is reportedly considering a plan to have tech companies bid on building new power plants in an effort to lower electricity prices for average Americans, who are starting to push back against power-hungry data centers. The president has praised Microsoft for announcing that it will pay higher utility bills for its U.S. data centers.
Gov. Newsom comes out against billionaire’s tax
California Governor Gavin Newsom has joined a list of business leaders in opposing a billionaire tax for the state that will be voted on in November. He describes it as “bad business,” creating a split in the Democratic Party between him and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's “tax the rich” sentiment.
Oracle struggles to bring employees to new HQ
Oracle is struggling to bring employees to its “world headquarters” in Nashville despite investing over $1 billion dollars in the office and offering an in-house branch of Nobu, the famed sushi restaurant. Most employees are reportedly hesitant to move simply because of salary ceilings in the state.
Tesla’s self-driving subscription model draws criticism
Tesla customers are speaking out on social media after CEO Elon Musk announced that the company’s self-driving technology will only be available through a monthly subscription after Feb. 14. “You will own nothing and be happy,” one X user posted.
The markets
S&P 500 futures were up 0.28% this morning. The last session closed up 0.26%. STOXX Europe 600 was up 0.08% in early trading. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 was up o.02% in early trading. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 0.32%. China’s CSI 300 was up o.41%. The South Korea KOSPI was up 0.90%. India’s NIFTY 50 was up 0.11%. Bitcoin was at $95K.
Around the watercooler
Exclusive: Former OpenAI policy chief creates nonprofit institute, calls for independent safety audits of frontier AI models by Jeremy Kahn
Worried about AI taking your job? New Anthropic research shows it’s not that simple by Sharon Goldman
Singapore tries to give its flagging stock market a kickstart with a link to the NASDAQ, allowing firms to easily list in both places by Angelica Ang
CEO Daily is compiled and edited by Joey Abrams, Claire Zillman and Lee Clifford.
