Healthcare's new friend: Avatars

When it comes to leading or teaching patients, avatars can make more approachable and relatable guides than their human counterparts. Avatars are part of the intelligent virtual assistant market, which is expected to increase in North America at a compound annual growth rate of 33% between 2013 and 2020, according to Grand View Research. By 2020, global spending on IVA will reach $3.1 billion, the researcher found. Healthcare is helping drive this growth as organizations seek cost-effective yet engaging ways to interact with patients in order to meet federal mandates and target population health initiatives.