Main keynote

On the shared road to autonomy:lessons from self-driving cars for the future of care.

Sebastian ThrunCo-founder, Google X and WaymoCEO, Sage AI Labs  |  Co-founder and Chairman, Cresta  |  Adjunct Professor, Stanford
Register now

Bio

Sebastian Thrun is a pioneering AI researcher, entrepreneur, and one of the architects of self-driving technology.

  • 2005Led the Stanford team behind Stanley, winner of the DARPA Grand Challenge and now on display at the Smithsonian.
  • Google XCo-founded the moonshot lab behind the self-driving car project (now Waymo), Google Glass, and Street View.
  • 21M+Learners served by Udacity, the online education platform he co-founded in 2012.

As a Stanford professor, he led the team that built Stanley, the robotic vehicle that won the 2005 DARPA Grand Challenge and is now on display at the Smithsonian, and Junior, which placed second in the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge. Both laid the groundwork for what became the autonomous vehicle industry.

In 2007, Thrun joined Google, where he rose to Vice President and Fellow and co-founded Google X, the moonshot lab behind the self-driving car project (now Waymo), Google Glass, and Google Street View. In 2012, he co-founded Udacity, the online education platform known for its nanodegree programs, which served over 21 million learners worldwide before its acquisition by Accenture in 2024. He also co-founded Kitty Hawk Corporation, an electric aircraft startup backed by Google co-founder Larry Page, serving as CEO until 2022, and Crossing Minds, an AI-powered recommendation startup whose team was acquired by OpenAI in 2025.

Today, Thrun is CEO of Sage AI Labs, a stealth AI venture, and co-founder and Chairman of the board of Cresta, an AI-powered contact center platform. He remains an adjunct professor at Stanford and is actively involved in several emerging AI startups. Elected to the National Academy of Engineering at just 39, named one of Foreign Policy's Top 100 Global Thinkers, and recognized by The Guardian as a "fighter for internet freedom," Thrun continues to shape the future of AI, robotics, and education.

Main keynote · Xccelerate 2027

What three days here gets you.

Four things, worth the plane ticket on their own.

01

The State of Autonomous Healthcare Operations 2027

The first annual benchmark on where the industry actually stands on the path from AI pilots to autonomous operations, released live on the main stage before anywhere else.

02

Autonomous Healthcare Operations running live

The exhibit floor is where agents work real queues in front of you. The partners who build the infrastructure underneath are on the floor with them, open every break, lunch, and reception.

03

Industry keynotes

Two main-stage speakers from industries that already crossed into autonomous operations, on what the shift did to their companies, their people, and their economics, and what healthcare can borrow.

04

The AHO Awards

Main-stage recognition for the health systems, health plans, medical groups, and individuals who moved furthest along the autonomy curve this year. Judged on autonomous workflows operating at scale with measurable outcomes, not on tools adopted.

Four tracks. Each one an operating domain.

Four operating domains, four buyers, one conference.
Named by outcome, not by product.

Autonomous Revenue Operations

The revenue cycle that works the queue before your team gets to it. Prior authorization, coding, denials, claims follow-up, and the patient access front door. How voice and workflow agents take the volume, and where certified people step in with the context already assembled.

Autonomous Population Health

From risk score to closed gap, with no one chasing the list. Risk stratification, care gaps, quality performance, and closing the loop from risk to intervention to documented outcome, across every contract from value-based to fee-for-service.

Autonomous Payer Operations

Decisions in minutes, with a clinician on every one that needs judgment. Prior authorization intake and medical necessity review, utilization management, appeals, and the member contact center, run as one autonomous stack with clinical oversight built in.

Autonomous Practice Operations

The practice that schedules, documents, and refers while the physician sees patients. Scheduling, ambient documentation, the referral loop, and what the autonomous physician practice looks like for the clinicians inside it.

Featured speakers

Xccelerate speakers include leading health system executives, industry experts, and AI innovators — from Innovaccer and across the broader healthcare ecosystem.

Mark Hassenstab

Mark Hassenstab
VP, Risk Adjustment
Curana Health

Joon Lee

Joon Lee
CEO
Champion Payer Solutions

Dima Goncharov

Dima Goncharov
CEO
Metriport

Abhinav Shashank

Abhinav Shashank
Co-founder & CEO
Innovaccer

David Johnson

David Johnson
CEO, 4sight Health
Innovaccer

Sanjay Gupta

Sanjay Gupta
CTO
Novant Health

Emily Brower

Emily Brower
Chief Executive Officer
NAACOs

Sandy Gupta

Sandy Gupta
Cofounder and COO
Innovaccer

Agenda at a glance

Three days, three jobs:
arrive, prove it, take it home.

Arrive

Arrive, register, and meet the room before the first keynote.

12pm onwards ET

Registration open

Badge collection and check-in at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco. Desk open through the evening.

1:00pm → 4:30pm ET

Optional San Francisco activities

Small-group activities across the city. Sign up at registration.

5:30pm → 7:00pm ET

Welcome reception

The whole room, in one place, before the program starts.

Prove it

Main stage to lunch. Four tracks through the afternoon. Awards and the floor at night.

7:30am → 8:30am ET

Breakfast, exhibit floor opens

Live agents working real queues on the floor from the first coffee.

8:30am → 11:30am ET

General session

The state of healthcare autonomous operations today, the infrastructure being built to deliver it, and the leaders already running it: opening remarks, a keynote from beyond healthcare, the platform keynote, and an executive panel on rewiring the enterprise.

11:30am → 12:30pm ET

Networking lunch, exhibit floor open

12:30pm → 5:00pm ET

Breakout tracks

Revenue, Population Health, Payer, and Practice Operations run in parallel. Each track defines what autonomous looks like in its domain, puts customers on stage with real outcomes, then walks one workflow end to end. Breaks route through the exhibit floor.

5:00pm → 6:00pm ET

General session

The AHO Awards and the day's close.

6:00pm → 7:00pm ET

Exhibitor reception

On the floor, with the partners and the agents.

Take it home

Govern, regulate, look ahead, and leave with the benchmark.

7:30am → 8:30am ET

Breakfast, exhibit floor open

8:30am → 10:00am ET

General session

Governing the data that governs the system, the regulatory road autonomy runs on, and the Autonomy Committee unveiled.

10:00am → 11:00am ET

Breakout tracks

Closed-door peer roundtables by domain, Chatham House rules.

11:00am → 12:00pm ET

Closing session

The State of Autonomous Healthcare Operations 2027 released, and a closing keynote on the autonomous decade.

Registration fees

Fee depends on who's registering and how early.

Early

ends Nov 20
Customer$299
Healthcare
Organization
$499
Partner$699
Register now

Advance

Starts Nov 21
Customer$499
Healthcare
Organization
$699
Partner$699
Register now

Standard

Starts Jan 16
Customer$699
Healthcare
Organization
$899
Partner$699
Register now

VIP program

Registration fee waived, based on qualification. Request an invitation with your role and organization.

Media / analysts

Complimentary, based on acceptance. Apply for a press or analyst pass.

Bring your team

Teams of three or more from the same organization automatically save $100 per registration at checkout.

The room thisgrew out of.

Xccelerate 2026 brought health system, health plan, and medical group leaders to San Francisco under one theme: the era of autonomous healthcare starts now. The industry bodies that benchmark the technology and represent the buyers sat on the main stage rather than in the audience.

    40+

    Speakers, including CFOs, CIOs, CMOs, state health leaders, and the heads of AMGA and NAACOS

    11

    Sponsors, from cloud and consulting to clinical content and interoperability

    5

    Industry collaborators on the program

    [ ]

    Attendees (number to confirm)

    Delivered in collaboration with

    A stage built
    for the future.

    Main stage, four track rooms, the exhibit floor, and the evenings, all inside the Hyatt Regency San Francisco. Move between them in minutes, and stay where the program is.

    Hyatt Regency San Francisco atrium
    Venue
    Hyatt Regency San Francisco
    Address
    5 Embarcadero Center, San Francisco, CA 94111
    Phone
    (415) 788-1234
    Room rate
    $289 per night for Xccelerate attendees
    Book by
    23 December 2026
    Cancellation policy
    72 hours prior or 1 night fee/credit card req
    Book your room

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Frequently Asked Question

    What is Xccelerate?

    Xccelerate is Innovaccer's annual working conference for healthcare's shift from AI pilots to autonomous operations. This year's edition runs January 24–26, 2027 at the Hyatt Regency, San Francisco.

    When and where is Xccelerate taking place?

    January 24–26, 2027, at the Hyatt Regency, San Francisco.

    Can I attend Xccelerate remotely?

    Reach out to events@innovaccer.com and we'll get you an answer directly.

    How can I participate as a sponsor or partner?

    To learn more about sponsorship opportunities, please submit a request here. A member of our team will reach out with further details.

    Are there any travel and accommodation options available?

    Xccelerate provides complimentary hotel accommodations at the Grand Hyatt San Francisco for registered attendees, along with meals throughout the conference. Travel to San Francisco, including flights, is not covered.

    Who do I contact for more information?

    You can reach out anytime to xccelerate@innovaccer.com for any questions or support.