Newsweek names 38 companies as winners in first AI Impact Awards

Newsweek has announced the winners of its inaugural AI Impact Awards, recognizing 38 companies across 13 categories for their innovative use of artificial intelligence. The awards highlight how AI is transforming industries from healthcare to finance, with companies being celebrated for solving practical challenges through responsible AI implementation.

What you should know: The competition drew entries from diverse sectors, with a panel of 56 expert judges evaluating submissions based on real-world impact and innovation.

• Healthcare led with five winners, followed by education with four recipients.
• Every Cure, a nonprofit identifying new uses for FDA-approved medications, won both the overall Best in Class award and recognition in the Best Outcomes, Materials Science and Chemistry category.
• Perfect Corp. earned the Best Outcomes, Customer Experience award for its Skin Analysis tool in the brand and retail category.

The big picture: The awards reflect AI’s rapid integration into American workplaces and daily life, with Pew Research Center data showing that one in six American workers currently use AI for at least some of their work.

• An additional one in four workers say their jobs could incorporate AI technology, even if they’re not currently using it.
• The recognition spans traditional industries like finance and healthcare as well as emerging areas like AI human interaction and sustainability.

What they’re saying: Industry leaders emphasized the validation these awards provide for their AI innovation efforts.

• “AI is reshaping our world, and the organizations receiving this award are at the forefront of that transformation,” said Jennifer H. Cunningham, Newsweek’s editor-in-chief.
• Wayne Liu, chief growth officer at Perfect Corp., noted the award’s significance: “Not all awards are equal. This one is very different, and it also gives us all this sense of excitement. Our technology, our effort has been seen.”
• Artem Rodichev, founder and CEO of Ex-Human (winner of the Extraordinary Impact in AI Human Interactivity award), said the recognition “validates our vision that emotional depth matters” and that “building AI is not about functional stuff, but how technology can make people feel better.”

What’s next: Winners will attend Newsweek’s AI Impact Summit in Sonoma, California, from June 23-25, bringing together tech innovators, executives, policymakers, and ethicists for discussions on effective AI adoption strategies.