AI risks top ECRI’s 2025 list of health technology hazards

Editor's Note

Artificial intelligence (AI) enabled technologies present the greatest technology risk to healthcare organizations in 2025, according to the latest list from ECRI, a nonprofit organization dedicated to safety in the industry.

As detailed in the organization’s December 4 announcement, the annual report highlights critical risks that healthcare organizations must address to safeguard patient safety and operational efficiency. AI, which has grown from medical imaging to applications like diagnosis and scheduling, is presented as one of the defining challenges of modern medicine. When mismanaged, it can present misleading results, perpetuate data bias, and harm underrepresented populations.  

Unregulated ancillary AI systems also carry risks due to their indirect influence on patient care. ECRI emphasizes the importance of critically evaluating and setting guardrails for AI integration.

ECRI’s Top Ten Health Technology Hazards for 2025, in rank order, are:

1. Risks with AI-enabled health technologies
2. Unmet technology support needs for home care patients
3. Vulnerable technology vendors and cybersecurity threats
4. Substandard or fraudulent medical devices and supplies
5. Fire risk from supplemental oxygen
6. Dangerously low default alarm limits on anesthesia units
7. Mishandled temporary holds on medication orders
8. Poorly managed infusion lines
9. Harmful medical adhesive products
10. Incomplete investigations of infusion system incidents