Caroline Marszal and Shyla Bhayana, first-year dentistry students at Western University, are keen to observe how dentistry will evolve by the time they graduate, especially as technology and artificial intelligence (AI) continue to advance.
“It’s going to be interesting to see what the field is going to look like compared to how it looks now, especially with digital dentistry,” said Marszal.
Bhayana noted that digital dentistry is currently receiving significant attention. “I’m eager to see how it continues to evolve,” she said. “It’s slowly being incorporated into clinics, which is exciting.”
Students like Marszal and Bhayana find themselves in a transitional period where technology is rapidly advancing, and AI is increasingly integrated into various aspects of dentistry, from diagnostics to workflow management. While these developments promise increased efficiency and reduced costs, they also prompt discussions about how dental education should adapt.
“Most Canadian dental schools are in the evaluation and planning phase.” Dr. Peter Fritz.
“Most Canadian dental schools are in the evaluation and planning phase, carefully considering how AI can complement traditional training methods while ensuring students develop fundamental clinical reasoning skills,” said Dr. Peter Fritz, a certified specialist in periodontics who maintains a full-time private practice in Fonthill, Ontario.
Dr. Fritz, who also serves as an adjunct assistant clinical professor in the Division of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery at McMaster University’s Michael DeGroote School of Medicine, added that some universities are actively exploring AI applications in diagnostics and treatment planning.
“The biggest barriers to widespread AI adoption are cost, faculty training, and curriculum constraints,” he noted.
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Looking to the U.S. for inspiration
As Canadian dental schools deliberate on integrating AI, students are observing developments in the United States to gauge potential directions.
“I’ve heard that some schools in the U.S. have a digital dentistry component in their curricula. It’ll be interesting to see if Canada starts to include this, or where the trend goes,” said Bhayana.
Several U.S. dental schools, including the University of Colorado, Boston University, the University of Southern California, the University of Michigan, and Ohio State University, have increasingly incorporated digital dentistry into their programs.
In 2018, the American College of Prosthodontists released a Digital Dentistry Curriculum aimed at preparing dental students and specialty residents to utilize advanced digital technology, with the goal of standardizing and enhancing digital dentistry education nationwide.
“Implementing digital dentistry requires significant financial investment—not just for equipment, but also for ongoing technical support, software licensing, and data security infrastructure,” Dr. Fritz explained. “Faculty training is another major challenge, as many educators were trained before these technologies became widespread and require continuous professional development to effectively teach AI-driven concepts.”
Virtual Reality in dental education
U.S. dental schools are also experimenting with virtual reality (VR) applications. Last year, the University of Florida launched an AI-powered simulation program that combines avatars and VR to train future dentists and nurse practitioners.
“The widespread adoption in Canada will likely take a more measured approach,” said Dr. Fritz. “AI-powered VR represents a significant investment, and most Canadian programs are prioritizing foundational digital technologies before exploring more advanced applications.”
Related link: Smarter smiles: How AI is transforming dentistry in remote areas
“We actually have another university in Boston that we’re soon to be signing with a project.” Dr. Amreesh Khanna, CEO and founder of OraQ AI.
Cultural perspectives on innovation
A Calgary-based health tech startup, OraQ AI, offers insight into the cultural dynamics influencing this transitional phase.
OraQ AI, an AI-driven software platform aimed at standardizing decision-making in dental practices, garnered attention last year when it partnered with the Center for Innovation and Translation (CIT) at the University of the Pacific’s Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry. The collaboration launched a research project to explore the effectiveness of AI in dentistry, focusing initially on enhancing consistency in clinical decision-making among dental faculty.
“In San Francisco and Silicon Valley, there’s a culture of innovation that’s inherently ingrained in the area. When I created the startup and went down to the Bay Area, people were excited about innovation and taking chances,” said Dr. Amreesh Khanna, CEO and founder of OraQ AI.
Dr. Khanna was introduced to the Dugoni School through a U.S.-based colleague, leading to the partnership.
“Dr. Rebecca Moazzez chairs that initiative [CIT], and Daniel Abrahams also leads the department. Their whole premise was: ‘We want to find innovations, test them, pilot them, incorporate them into our curriculum to expose our students and faculty—and then figure out how to translate that into broader use, including in private practice.’ So that was their whole social approach, too,” he explained.
Following the project with Dugoni, another U.S. university approached Dr. Khanna.
“We actually have another university in Boston that we’re soon to be signing with a project,” he said, noting that he couldn’t disclose the university’s name until it becomes official. “The project is going to be about how we incorporate AI technology and innovation from an education perspective, in the preclinical and clinical curriculum.”
Dr. Khanna said it was the university that initiated contact when asked who approached first. In a follow-up question about whether any Canadian dental universities had done the same, he responded, “No.” However, he made sure to acknowledge the earlier support from the University of Alberta and its dental faculty dean, Dr. Paul Major, as well as the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute (Amii), for their assistance in clinical and technology validation required to launch OraQ AI.
After practicing dentistry for 17 years, Dr. Khanna launched OraQ AI in 2023. The company has since secured a total of $5.2 million in equity and non-dilutive funding.
“I think the culture there [U.S.] is more open to taking risks. They want to try things out, see what works and what doesn’t, and learn quickly. In contrast, Canadian culture tends to be a bit more conservative. We want to know that something is working, that it’s tried, tested, and true,” he added.
The imperative of AI competency
Despite the evolutionary phase Canadian schools are undergoing, Dr. Fritz emphasized that “competency in AI is not optional—it is essential for the future of dentistry.”
“Schools that delay integration risk falling behind, while forward-thinking programs that embrace AI will equip graduates with the tools needed to succeed in an increasingly digital and data-driven profession,” he said. “In the coming years, we will likely see a national push for standardization, but for now, AI adoption remains institution-dependent and varies based on leadership priorities and available resources.”
Dr. Fritz’s prognosis is beginning to materialize. On May 13, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced the creation of a new artificial intelligence ministry and appointed former journalist Evan Solomon as Canada’s first-ever federal AI minister. Previously, AI initiatives fell largely under the industry portfolio.
During the election campaign, Carney highlighted the economic potential of AI and pledged to invest in AI training, adoption, and commercialization.
“We need to approach it with the mindset of, ‘How will it help me do what I do better?’ not ‘How can it do something for me, so I don’t have to?’” Dr. Amreesh Khanna, CEO and founder of OraQ AI.
Advice for aspiring dentists
When asked for advice to students, Dr. Fritz recommended gaining hands-on experience with generative AI platforms such as Claude or ChatGPT to understand their capabilities and limitations.
“All dental students and dentists should develop a foundational understanding of AI concepts as this technology becomes increasingly prevalent in healthcare,” he said. “Dentistry with an AI mindset is the future.”
Dr. Khanna advised students to approach AI with the right mindset.
“We need to approach it with the mindset of, ‘How will it help me do what I do better?’ not ‘How can it do something for me, so I don’t have to?’” he said.
After all, the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario (RCDSO) had already cautioned against “over-reliance on AI,” citing risks such as undermining clinical judgment and losing the “human touch” in patient care, as well as concerns about biased datasets.
“The focus should always remain on the patient. We’re not trying to replace what we do, but instead, empower ourselves to do it better,” Dr. Khanna continued. “In that way, the patient is always at the forefront, and we’re able to provide better care than we could have 10 years ago.”