- AI adoption among veterinary professionals reached 83.7% in 2026, compared with 39.2% in 2024.
- Among AI users, 88.3% report using the technology daily or weekly.
- Clinical documentation, including AI scribes and SOAP notes, is the most common application, used by 62.8% of respondents who use AI.
- Despite widespread adoption, 65.2% of practices introduced AI without significantly redesigning their workflows.
- The most AI-mature practices reported six times the business outcomes of the least mature practices.
- Concerns about AI-related job displacement declined, while concerns about data security and inadequate training increased.
Artificial intelligence use has rapidly become commonplace in veterinary medicine, but a new study suggests simply adopting the technology may not be enough for practices to generate meaningful business results.
The 2026 Veterinary AI Study from Digitail and the American Animal Hospital Association found that 83.7% of veterinary professionals surveyed now use AI, up from 39.2% in 2024.
The research included responses from 1,730 veterinary professionals across practice types and roles in the United States and Canada.
Among respondents already using AI, 88.3% said they engage with the technology daily or weekly, while most reported using it for at least three different applications.
Documentation leads veterinary AI applications
Clinical documentation has emerged as the most common application for AI in veterinary practice.
Among AI users, 62.8% reported using tools such as AI scribes and technology for generating SOAP notes.
The study also found interest moving beyond individual AI tools toward more customized systems. Nearly 39% of AI users said they have tried building their own AI agent, while another 29.9% said they are considering doing so.
Looking ahead, 79.8% of respondents expect AI to become part of most veterinary clinic workflows within five years.
Adoption outpaces practice strategy
While AI adoption has accelerated, the study found that many veterinary practices have not made corresponding changes to their operations.
About 65% of practices introduced AI without meaningfully redesigning their workflows. Nearly half lack an AI strategy or a designated person responsible for AI, while close to one-third have no AI governance structure.
Digitail and AAHA assessed practices using a four-point Veterinary AI Maturity Index covering six areas: strategy and intent, governance and oversight, vendor evaluation, workflow and technology integration, adoption depth, and organizational capability and readiness.
The average maturity score was 2.67 out of 4. Three-quarters of practices using AI fell into the emerging or established categories, indicating they had moved beyond initial experimentation but had not reached highly structured implementation.
AI maturity linked to greater returns
One of the study’s central findings was the relationship between AI maturity and reported practice outcomes.
The most mature practices reported six times the business outcomes of practices with the lowest AI maturity, according to the study. The percentage of practices reporting no measurable impact from AI also declined as maturity increased.
Digitail CEO and cofounder Sebastian Gabor said the findings indicate the conversation around veterinary AI is shifting from whether practices will adopt the technology to how effectively they use it.
Practices taking a more structured approach reported benefits including additional time with patients, stronger client retention and increased revenue, according to the study.
Concerns shift toward security and training
Attitudes toward the potential workforce effects of AI have also changed since the previous survey.
Concern about AI displacing veterinary jobs fell from 37.2% of respondents in 2024 to 20% in 2026.
At the same time, concerns about data security and insufficient AI training increased, suggesting veterinary teams are becoming more focused on the practical challenges of integrating the technology into everyday operations.
Study introduces veterinary AI maturity model
The 2026 research was conducted from July 27 through Aug. 12 and collected 1,730 self-reported responses from veterinary professionals in the United States and Canada.
Researchers retained core measures from Digitail and AAHA’s 2024 study, which included 4,031 respondents, allowing them to evaluate changes in AI adoption and attitudes over the two-year period.
The new Veterinary AI Maturity Index was adapted from the Healthcare AI Governance Readiness Assessment, a peer-reviewed framework developed for human healthcare.
Digitail and AAHA said the maturity model is intended to give veterinary practices a way to evaluate not only whether they are using AI, but whether they have the strategy, governance, technology integration and organizational capabilities needed to generate value from it.
Information sourced from the company’s press release.
