AI in Healthcare is entering a new phase as SAP and Fresenius announce a strategic partnership aimed at accelerating digital healthcare delivery at scale. Together, the two companies plan to create a digital backbone for a sovereign, interoperable, and AI-supported healthcare system that can be deployed globally while meeting strict requirements for data sovereignty, security, and regulatory compliance.
At the core of this initiative is a shared vision: building an open, integrated, and data-driven digital health ecosystem. By combining Fresenius’ deep expertise as one of the world’s largest healthcare providers with SAP’s future-oriented enterprise technologies, the partnership aims to make AI a safe, usable, and everyday tool for hospitals and medical facilities worldwide.
A central pillar of the collaboration is digital sovereignty for healthcare. SAP and Fresenius plan to jointly develop an individual, scalable healthcare platform that enables connected, data-driven processes across the entire care chain. This platform is designed to ensure that sensitive health data remains under sovereign control while still being accessible for AI-supported insights and decision-making.
The technological foundation of the platform will be built on proven SAP solutions, including SAP Business Suite, SAP Business Data Cloud (SAP BDC), SAP Business Technology Platform (SAP BTP), and SAP Business AI. These technologies provide a unified and compliant environment for secure data exchange, controlled AI model operation, and seamless integration with existing healthcare systems.
By leveraging these tools, the partnership aims to increase quality, transparency, and efficiency across healthcare operations. AI-supported processes can help optimize hospital workflows, improve resource planning, and enable more informed clinical decisions, all while reducing administrative burdens on medical staff.
Interoperability is another major focus of the initiative. SAP and Fresenius plan to support modern hospital information systems through SAP’s “AnyEMR” strategy. Using open industry standards such as HL7 FHIR, the platform will enable seamless integration between hospital information systems, electronic medical records, and other medical applications.
This standards-based approach is critical for enabling cross-system data flows without vendor lock-in. It allows hospitals and healthcare providers to connect existing systems while gradually adopting new AI-powered services, ensuring long-term flexibility and scalability.
The partnership also has a strong European dimension. SAP and Fresenius plan to build a sovereign European solution for an integrated healthcare ecosystem, aligned with regional regulatory and data protection requirements. This is particularly important in today’s global landscape, where control over health data and digital infrastructure has become a strategic priority.
Christian Klein, CEO of SAP SE, highlighted the ambition of the collaboration, stating that the goal is to create a sovereign, interoperable healthcare platform that sets new standards for data sovereignty, security, and innovation. According to Klein, SAP’s technology will enable Fresenius to fully harness digital and AI-supported processes to sustainably improve patient care worldwide.
Michael Sen, CEO of Fresenius, emphasized the practical impact on healthcare professionals. He noted that the partnership aims to make data and AI secure, simple, and scalable companions for doctors and hospital teams. By reducing complexity and increasing automation, the initiative is designed to free up time for what matters most: caring for patients.
From an investment perspective, both companies are committing significant resources to the transformation. SAP and Fresenius plan to invest a mid three-digit million euro amount in the medium term to drive the digital transformation of the German and European healthcare systems through AI-supported solutions. This level of investment signals a long-term commitment rather than a short-term technology experiment.
The collaboration will be implemented through multiple forms of cooperation. These include joint investments in startups and scaleups, co-development of new technologies, and close coordination through shared governance structures. This multi-layered approach is intended to accelerate innovation while ensuring alignment between technology development and real-world healthcare needs.
More broadly, this partnership reflects a growing trend in AI in Healthcare toward platform-based ecosystems rather than isolated tools. By focusing on interoperability, sovereignty, and scalability, SAP and Fresenius are positioning their solution as a foundational layer that other healthcare innovations can build upon.
As healthcare systems worldwide face rising costs, workforce shortages, and increasing complexity, AI-supported digital platforms are becoming essential. The SAP–Fresenius collaboration shows how enterprise technology and healthcare expertise can come together to deliver practical, secure, and future-ready solutions.
If successful, this initiative could serve as a blueprint for how AI in Healthcare is deployed responsibly at scale, balancing innovation with trust, efficiency with safety, and digital transformation with human-centered care.
For more insights on AI partnerships, digital health innovation, and the future of healthcare technology, visit ainewstoday.org for the latest AI news updates.
