Five years after Digital Health Applications (DiGA) became part of Germany’s statutory healthcare system, the Future DiGA Summit brought together stakeholders from healthcare, policy, regulation, research and innovation to look at what comes next.
Five years after Digital Health Applications (DiGA) became part of Germany’s statutory healthcare system, the Future DiGA Summit brought together stakeholders from healthcare, policy, regulation, research and innovation to look at what comes next.
Held in Berlin on 15 December 2025 by the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG), the event placed a particular focus on the future of AI-enabled digital healthcare. As part of the summit, the BfArM Innovation Office organised the “Innovate Future Health – KI@DiGA” pitch, creating a platform for innovative approaches to the use of artificial intelligence in DiGA.
Chatdok-Herz was part of this conversation, bringing a perspective centred on AI-powered support for people living with chronic cardiovascular conditions.
Where AI meets digital therapeutics
The development of DiGA has demonstrated how digital technologies can become part of routine healthcare. The next phase raises a more complex question: how can AI make these applications more personalised, responsive and clinically meaningful?
For chronic conditions, this is particularly relevant. Cardiovascular disease does not follow the schedule of medical appointments. Patients may experience changes in symptoms, behaviour or health status between consultations.
AI can help digital health solutions respond more intelligently to this reality — for example by identifying relevant patterns, supporting self-management and helping patients engage with their care over time.
But technological capability alone is not enough.
Evidence remains central
As AI becomes more prominent in digital therapeutics, innovation needs to remain connected to evidence, safety and measurable healthcare outcomes.
The BfArM's DiGA framework places importance on areas including safety, medical quality, data protection, interoperability and evidence of positive healthcare effects.
For AI-enabled applications, these principles become even more important. Personalisation should serve a defined healthcare purpose. Automated recommendations need appropriate safeguards. And patients and healthcare professionals need to understand the role and limitations of the technology.
Chatdok-Herz reflects this approach by focusing on AI as a means of supporting patients and complementing medical care — rather than replacing clinical expertise.
Looking beyond the next five years
The Future DiGA Summit highlighted an important transition for digital healthcare in Germany. DiGA have moved from a new concept towards an established element of care, while AI is opening up new possibilities for how digital interventions can be designed and delivered. The Federal Ministry of Health has explicitly identified the combination of DiGA and AI as an area with further development potential.
The opportunity now is to build on that foundation responsibly.
For Chatdok, the future of digital therapeutics lies not simply in adding AI to existing applications, but in using AI where it can create meaningful clinical value: supporting continuous care, enabling more personalised interventions and helping patients manage chronic conditions between traditional points of contact.
The next chapter of DiGA will therefore be shaped by more than technology. Evidence, responsible innovation and collaboration between healthcare, regulation and technology will determine how far AI can contribute to better care.
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