{"id":48489,"topic":"ai","source":"Penn LDI","title":"AI Chatbot Boosts HPV Vaccine Intent–But Effects Fade - Penn LDI","url":"https://ldi.upenn.edu/our-work/research-updates/ai-chatbot-boosts-hpv-vaccine-intent-but-effects-fade/","url_hash":"58edbefff010cf423e0a938f497aced1d2b9d431","author":"","summary":"AI Chatbot Boosts HPV Vaccine Intent–But Effects Fade Penn LDI","content":"AI’s adoption in health care is accelerating, moving quickly from ‘experimentation to execution’. But it hasn’t happened without hiccups. The widespread use of AI-powered chatbots raises questions about AI’s ability to enhance health communication in particular.\nA new randomized controlled trial from LDI experts Neil Sehgal, Sunny Rai, Anish Agarwal, Melanie Kornides, Alison Buttenheim, Sharath Chandra Guntuku, and colleagues found that chatting with an AI bot increased hesitant parents’ intention to vaccinate their child against human papillomavirus (HPV). However, the AI chatbot was no more effective than reading existing public health materials on vaccines.\n“AI chatbots are promising, but they should not be assumed to outperform existing tools simply because they are newer or more interactive,” said Sharath Chandra Guntuku. “A short read of a CDC webpage held up at least as well as a chatbot conversation, and the effect actually lasted longer.”\nThe study is timely because already, nearly one in three Americans turns to AI tools and chatbots for information and advice about their health. And a 2023 Science study found that chatting with an AI-powered bot could reduce beliefs in conspiracy theories.\nComparing new AI with standard public health materials\nNearly 1,300 parents from the US, UK, and Canada were randomly assigned to receive a brief interaction with an AI-powered chatbot, government-issued HPV vaccination materials, or no message. Chatbot conversations and exposure to written materials each lasted at least three minutes. Immediately after, parents were assessed for their intention to vaccinate their children against HPV. And again after 15 and 45 days.\nImmediate, but not lasting, results\nShort conversations with the AI chatbot made parents more likely to say they would vaccinate their children against HPV compared to no intervention. But the chatbot did not outperform regular public health materials, and the effect faded after 45 days. The public health material effects, on the other hand, held at 45 days.\nIn other words, current, evidence-based materials held their own against the AI chatbot, though the chatbot offered more interactive and personalized exchanges about HPV vaccination.\n“Rigorous comparisons against realistic control conditions and assessments of durability will be essential as AI tools are increasingly incorporated into public health practice,” said Sehgal.\nThe study, “Large Language Model Chatbot Conversations vs Public Health Materials and Parental HPV Vaccination Intentions: A Randomized Clinical Trial,” was published June 8, 2026 in JAMA Network Open by Neil Sehgal, Sunny Rai, Manuel Tonneau, Anish Agarwal, Joseph Cappella, Melanie L. 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But it hasn’t happened without hiccups. The widespread use of AI-powered chatbots raises questions about AI’s ability to enhance health communication in particular.\nA new randomized controlled trial from LDI experts Neil Sehgal, Sunny Rai, Anish Agarwal, Melanie Kornides, Alison Buttenheim, Sharath Chandra Guntuku, and colleagues found that chatting with an AI bot increased hesitant parents’ intention to vaccinate their child against human papillomavirus (HPV). However, the AI chatbot was no more effective than reading existing public health materials on vaccines.\n“AI chatbots are promising, but they should not be assumed to outperform existing tools simply because they are newer or more interactive,” said Sharath Chandra Guntuku. “A short read of a CDC webpage held up at least as well as a chatbot conversation, and the effect actually lasted longer.”\nThe study is timely because already, nearly one in three Americans turns to AI tools and chatbots for information and advice about their health. And a 2023 Science study found that chatting with an AI-powered bot could reduce beliefs in conspiracy theories.\nComparing new AI with standard public health materials\nNearly 1,300 parents from the US, UK, and Canada were randomly assigned to receive a brief interaction with an AI-powered chatbot, government-issued HPV vaccination materials, or no message. Chatbot conversations and exposure to written materials each lasted at least three minutes. Immediately after, parents were assessed for their intention to vaccinate their children against HPV. And again after 15 and 45 days.\nImmediate, but not lasting, results\nShort conversations with the AI chatbot made parents more likely to say they would vaccinate their children against HPV compared to no intervention. But the chatbot did not outperform regular public health materials, and the effect faded after 45 days. The public health material effects, on the other hand, held at 45 days.\nIn other words, current, evidence-based materials held their own against the AI chatbot, though the chatbot offered more interactive and personalized exchanges about HPV vaccination.\n“Rigorous comparisons against realistic control conditions and assessments of durability will be essential as AI tools are increasingly incorporated into public health practice,” said Sehgal.\nThe study, “Large Language Model Chatbot Conversations vs Public Health Materials and Parental HPV Vaccination Intentions: A Randomized Clinical Trial,” was published June 8, 2026 in JAMA Network Open by Neil Sehgal, Sunny Rai, Manuel Tonneau, Anish Agarwal, Joseph Cappella, Melanie L. Kornides, Lyle Ungar, Alison Buttenheim, and Sharath Chandra Guntuku.","excerpt":"AI’s adoption in health care is accelerating, moving quickly from ‘experimentation to execution’. 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However, the AI chatbot was no more effective than reading existing public health materials on vaccines.\n“AI chatbots are promising, but they should not be assumed to outperform existing tools simply because they are newer or more interactive,” said Sharath Chandra Guntuku. “A short read of a CDC webpage held up at least as well as a chatbot conversation, and the effect actually lasted longer.”\nThe study is timely because already, nearly one in three Americans turns to AI tools and chatbots for information and advice about their health. And a 2023 Science study found that chatting with an AI-powered bot could reduce beliefs in conspiracy theories.\nComparing new AI with standard public health materials\nNearly 1,300 parents from the US, UK, and Canada were randomly assigned to receive a brief interaction with an AI-powered chatbot, government-issued HPV vaccination materials, or no message. Chatbot conversations and exposure to written materials each lasted at least three minutes. 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