The 2026 Physician Compensation Report from Doximity, drawn from nearly 23,000 surveys, shows doctors see artificial intelligence as a tool to improve their income and quality of life, not a threat to their jobs. That optimism arrives as physician pay growth moderates to 2% and the gap between specialist and primary care pay widens further.
AI as a hedge against burnout
Doximity's chief physician experience officer, Dr. Amit Phull, said the survey reveals "cautious optimism" among clinicians. Rather than fearing replacement, many physicians view AI proficiency as something that could advance their careers. "Because these tools do save clinicians time, they can be a hedge against more pernicious trends like burnout," Phull said. He added that at the workforce level, there is excitement about a potential shift in how healthcare is delivered.
One concrete example is AI-powered scribe technology that transcribes doctor-patient conversations. Phull described the current reality many patients know: the clinician logs into a terminal and starts typing immediately. "That human element has deteriorated over the years, and our scribe technology goes a long way in restoring that," he said. Even a minute saved translates to more eye contact, and a few minutes saved at the end of the day can mean more time with family.
What healthcare executives should do next
Phull offered a straightforward recommendation for leaders: talk to the doctors. "You will be shocked as to how often that does not occur," he said. Clinicians frequently report that no one checked whether software imposed on them actually served their clinical needs. Engaging physicians in tool selection and defining what success looks like builds ownership and drives engagement.
Doximity itself runs a clinician review program for its AI toolkit. In just a couple of months, more than 12,000 physicians provided over 45,000 clinical reviews. "Clinicians are the path to patients," Phull said. "This is all about patient care." The company's internal approach blends a Silicon Valley speed with healthcare caution: "We really do take the 'move fast' from our Silicon Valley roots, but we take the 'do no harm' from our singular focus on healthcare quite seriously."
Pay gaps and workforce strain
The report documents persistent inequities. Male physicians still outearn female physicians by 26%. The pay gap between primary care doctors and surgical specialists reached 90.1%, up from 87.3% in 2024. Phull said addressing these gaps starts with awareness and transparency. "Clinicians are humans too, and the broader clinician workforce struggles with some of the things that the broader human workforce, frankly, struggles with - and pay inequity is one of the issues amongst those struggles."
On the physician shortage, 85% of surveyed doctors said it already affects their clinical practice. Phull called the strain real and growing, but pointed to record medical school applications as a countervailing trend that could help bridge the gap.
Why this matters for healthcare professionals
The report signals that AI for Healthcare is moving from speculation to daily practice, and physician buy-in is stronger than many assumed. For healthcare executives and administrators, the message is clear: the clinicians who will use these tools want a voice in how they are selected and measured. Ignoring that input risks wasting investment on software that frustrates the workforce it is meant to help. The organizations that pair AI Agents & Automation with genuine clinician feedback will be better positioned to reduce burnout, protect patient relationships, and retain staff in an increasingly tight labor market.
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