CVS Health has outlined a broad digital and artificial intelligence (AI) strategy aimed at simplifying health care delivery.
The strategy deepens consumer engagement and supports multiyear earnings growth. It positions technology as a core driver of the company’s next phase rather than a back-office function.
At its 2025 investor day in December, the health care and pharmacy company introduced what it described as an AI-native consumer engagement platform. It designed the platform to connect interactions across CVS Pharmacy, CVS Caremark, Aetna and its health care delivery businesses into a single digital interface. Executives said the company intends for the platform to reduce friction for consumers by navigating prescriptions, benefits, and care, while also improving operational efficiency across the enterprise.
Chief executive officer David Joyner said the strategy addresses long-standing complexity in the U.S. health care system.
“Health care today is fragmented and difficult to navigate,” Joyner said in prepared remarks. “Our focus is on creating a simpler, more connected experience, and technology is central to that effort.”
CVS is No. 101 in the Top 2000. The database ranks North America’s largest online retailers by their annual ecommerce sales.
How CVS is using AI in its digital strategy
CVS estimates its businesses reach 185 million consumers annually, a scale the company believes it can leverage more effectively through digital engagement and data.
Executives emphasized the company is embedding AI directly into CVS’s technology architecture, rather than deployed as a series of standalone tools.
Tilak Mandadi, executive vice president and chief experience and technology officer, said CVS build the engagement platform with AI at its core. It enables personalization, automation and predictive insights across consumer and operational workflows.
“AI is not an add-on to this platform,” Mandadi said. “It’s embedded end to end — from personalization to workflow automation to how we generate insights.”
CVS said it already uses AI across pharmacy operations, benefits administration and clinical settings. That includes conversational tools to handle customer inquiries, automation to reduce administrative burden and ambient AI tools to assist clinicians with documentation.
While CVS did not announce a traditional ecommerce marketplace, executives said the platform is expected to drive transactions and service utilization by guiding consumers toward CVS offerings through digital channels.
The company described the platform as a digital front door that links mobile apps, web tools and in-person care, allowing CVS to connect online engagement with physical pharmacies, clinics and care teams.
CVS’ goal in its next phase
“Our goal isn’t to be a general online retailer,” Mandadi said. “It’s to help consumers take the next appropriate action in their health journey — whether that’s filling a prescription, scheduling care or understanding their benefits.”
CVS also signaled plans to commercialize elements of its engagement platform beyond its own operations. It plans to offer digital engagement capabilities to employers, payers and other partners. Executives referred to the concept internally as “engagement as a service.” They did not provide revenue targets or timelines, though.
Joyner said CVS is in discussions with potential partners. However, he stressed that internal execution remains the priority.
“The first step is delivering a great experience for our own consumers,” he said. “From there, we see opportunities to extend these capabilities more broadly.”
In addition to consumer engagement, CVS highlighted AI’s role in improving efficiency across call centers, pharmacy workflows and clinical operations. Executives said automation and predictive tools are reducing administrative workload and improving response times.
How CVS expects digital investments to affect earnings
The company tied its digital investments directly to financial performance. CVS raised its 2025 revenue outlook to at least $400 billion. It also issued initial guidance for 2026.
Chief financial officer Brian Newman said CVS expects mid-teens adjusted earnings-per-share growth through 2028, supported by cost discipline, margin improvement and technology-enabled productivity gains.
“Our strategy is focused on execution,” Newman said. “Technology and AI are important drivers of sustainable cash flow and long-term value.”
The Investor Day underscored CVS’s effort to reposition itself as a technology-enabled health care platform, using AI and digital engagement to connect pharmacy, insurance, and care delivery into a more unified experience.
The company is betting that improving engagement — rather than expanding physical footprint — will become a key differentiator as it seeks to drive growth and efficiency in a complex and highly regulated industry.
Whether CVS can translate that strategy into sustained financial gains will depend on execution in 2026 and beyond, but executives left little doubt about the direction: digital platforms and artificial intelligence are now central to CVS Health’s long-term strategy.
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