Bulletin of Dental Education Article

At the 2026 ADEA Annual Session & Exhibition, the ADEA Innovation Clinic, Education and Public Health (ICEPH) department led the panel session The Innovation Effect: A New Era in Clinical Education. The session was attended by about 250 attendees. This strong turnout reflected the dental education community's interest for dialogue on technology-driven learning.

The session brought together four innovators at the forefront of immersive and AI-driven educational technologies: Chloe Barrett, Founder and CEO of Immersify; Sompop Bencharit, D.D.S., M.S., Ph.D., FACP, President of HAIDENER; Stephen van Heerden of Planmeca; and Mini Suri, Co-founder and CEO of Velmeni. The panel was moderated by Gülsün Gül, D.D.S., M.B.A., M.P.H., M.S., ADEA ICEPH Chief, and Enrique M. Saldarriaga, Ph.D., ADEA ICEPH Director of Public Health Research and Policy.

The panelists examined how artificial intelligence, extended and mixed reality, augmented and virtual reality simulation and gamified learning are being applied to oral health education. The discussion emphasized practical implementation, including enhancing preclinical competency development, supporting clinical decision-making and addressing institutional considerations, such as faculty engagement, curriculum integration and long-term sustainability. Panelists also shared early outcomes and lessons learned from deploying these technologies within their organizations.

A lively Q&A capped the session, with multiple audience members contributing questions, which reflects the engagement these topics continue to spark across the dental education community.

ADEA ICEPH remains committed to fostering these conversations and advancing innovation in oral health education through collaborative, evidence-informed dialogue.

Published on May 13, 2026