Dental AI’s investment boom and the moment to collaborate

Artificial intelligence (AI) has quietly moved from the sidelines of dentistry into its daily vocabulary. We’re past the stage of novelty. AI is already influencing how clinicians interpret radiographs, plan treatment, and manage documentation. What’s new is the scale of investment now fueling that change.

In 2024, Pearl closed a $58 million Series B round¹ and Overjet followed with $53 million in Series C funding²—the two largest raises in dental-AI history. The global market for “AI in dentistry” is valued near $421 million, and analysts expect it to surpass $3 billion by 2034.³

These are not speculative numbers; they signal a maturing field where technology and health-care capital are meeting halfway. For those of us in practice, this isn’t just an economic headline. It’s a turning point. The money flowing in reflects confidence that dentistry is ready for intelligent, data-driven systems—but it also raises a question: are we ready for them?

AI tools and human judgment

Most AI tools entering clinics today excel at one thing—radiographic analysis. They highlight caries, bone loss, and pathology with remarkable precision. Yet, for all their promise, they’re landing in an ecosystem not designed for them. Our software platforms, reimbursement models, and regulatory pathways were built for human judgment, not machine learning.

This mismatch is nobody’s fault. It’s what happens when innovation runs faster than integration. If we take this moment to put strong validation, transparency, and education structures in place, we can guide progress instead of catching up later.

The next decade in AI

The next decade of progress will depend less on code and more on collaboration. The most durable AI products are born from partnerships where engineers sit beside clinicians, listening and refining. When that happens, the result isn’t just smarter software; it’s a tool that fits the rhythm of practice life.

Companies that engage early with dental professionals gain something money can’t buy—relevance. Clinicians gain something equally valuable—confidence. Together, they create systems that don’t just impress in demos but endure in the operatory.

Collaboration at this stage isn’t charity; it’s strategy. Transparency, real-world testing, and user education are not regulatory hurdles; they’re business advantages. The companies that embrace that view will build products the profession actually trusts.

Setting boundaries

AI’s power is still growing, and that’s exactly why the moment to set boundaries is now. Once systems become too complex to fully interpret, it will be harder to course-correct. Guardrails don’t mean heavy-handed regulation. They mean a shared commitment to evidence, fairness, and safety—principles the profession already understands well. Every new technology in dentistry, from digital radiography to CAD/CAM, went through a phase where enthusiasm outpaced caution. We learned then that credibility must come first. Initiatives such as the Artificial Intelligence in Dentistry Education Collaborative (AIDEC) inside the VA are showing how it can be done: clinicians, educators, and developers working together on validation and literacy before adoption becomes widespread. That model deserves the industry’s full engagement.

The next generation of AI

Beyond radiographic diagnostics, the next generation of dental AI will likely emerge in three areas:

Clinical efficiency: Systems that handle charting, clinical notes, and insurance coding could relieve the administrative burden that eats into patient time.

Predictive analytics: Tools that combine imaging with medical and behavioral data to flag patients at risk of rapid disease progression

Patient communication: AI-supported explanations, visualizations, and follow-up reminders that strengthen trust and improve adherence

Each of these relies on cooperation between technologists and the profession. Data quality, ethical design, and interoperability aren’t afterthoughts—they’re prerequisites. No matter how advanced the software, its success depends on the people who use it. Future dentists must understand not only what AI can do but where it fails. That literacy is now as essential as learning to read a radiograph or design a crown.

The importance of collaboration

Industry can play a constructive role here by partnering with universities and continuing-education providers to develop practical learning modules—real case examples, not marketing gloss. Empowering clinicians to use AI wisely will do more for long-term adoption than any campaign could.

AI will not replace dentists. But dentists who understand AI—and companies that build for them, not around them—will define the profession’s next chapter. The same values that have always guided good dentistry still apply: evidence before enthusiasm, safety before speed, and patients before profit.

This moment is our chance to apply those principles early, while the technology is still malleable and the relationships are being formed. If we get it right, dentistry’s digital transformation will not only be profitable; it will be principled.

And that, in the end, is the kind of progress worth investing in. 

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the Department of Veterans Affairs or the United States government.

Editor's note: This article appeared in the January 2026 print edition of Dental Economics magazine. Dentists in North America are eligible for a complimentary print subscription. Sign up here.

References

1. Pearl raises largest-ever investment in dental AI with $58 million round. Pearl. July 24, 2024. https://www.hellopearl.com/press-release/pearl-raises-largest-ever-investment-in-dental-ai-with-58-million-round
2. Overjet raises $53 million: the largest investment in the history of dental AI. Overjet. March 5, 2024. https://www.overjet.com/blog/overjet-raises-53-million-the-largest-investment-in-the-history-of-dental-ai
3. Global AI in dentistry market report. Market size estimated at $421 million in 2024; projected to reach $3.12 billion by 2034. InsightAce Analytic. 2024. https://www.insightaceanalytic.com/report/ai-in-dentistry-market/3004