The Sunnyvale, California–based surgical robotics leader is sharing its vision at the Society of Robotic Surgery’s (SRS) annual conference (SRS 2026) in Hollywood, Florida.
Intuitive said it aims to utilize AI to improve surgical care by reducing variability, improving outcomes, shortening learning curves, and ultimately expanding surgeon reach. It hopes to achieve this while maintaining the highest standards of patient safety and surgeon control. At SRS, the company intends to outline a structured approach to AI development. This approach utilizes real-world experience and outcomes from a global dataset of more than 20 million da Vinci procedures.
According to Intuitive, its approach utilizes five layers. It starts with good data, followed by meaningful insights, intraoperative guidance, augmented dexterity and supervised autonomy. AI provides precision and control, expanding surgeon capabilities while preserving accountability and control, Intuitive says.
The company’s novel surgical AI framework moves beyond visual recognition, it says. Its dataset, built from surgical videos, goes beyond what takes place in the operating field to capture the reasoning behind clinical choices.
In early testing, Intuitive says its models significantly outperformed general-purpose AI systems on a range of tasks. Those included surgical understanding, demonstrating the potential to advance more intelligent, context-aware surgical AI.
At SRS, the company plans to demonstrate how telecollaboration can help surgeons learn from each other, using AI to assist surgeons. It intends to facilitate a live telesurgery demonstration connecting surgeons at two Intuitive facilities — one in Sunnyvale and the other in Atlanta — in real time.
Commentary from Intuitive leadership
Dave Rosa, Intuitive CEO, said:
“Healthcare systems around the world are faced with the same challenges: delivering better patient outcomes, lowering the total cost of care, and expanding access—all while supporting care teams and improving patient experience. Our focus is on developing AI solutions that can address these challenges by helping care teams learn, collaborate, and deliver care more consistently and efficiently.”
Iman Jeddi, SVP and GM of da Vinci Platforms at Intuitive, said:
“We are building AI as a capability stack that spans the surgical journey — before, during, and after procedures. Each layer builds on the foundation below it, creating a pathway from data and insights to increasingly advanced forms of assistance. Supervised autonomy – our longer-term vision – is not about removing the surgeon. It’s about responsibly extending surgeon capability through technology that is grounded in data, rigorously validated, and designed to preserve surgeon control and accountability.”
