Generative artificial intelligence in dentistry: A narrative review of current approaches and future challenges

Artificial intelligence (AI) has become a commodity for laypeople and domain experts because of the advent of generative AI (GenAI) models that bridge the usability gap of AI by providing a natural language interface to interact with complex models. GenAI models perform tasks ranging from text generation, such as two-way chat systems, to image and video generation from user-provided textual descriptions. These advancements in AI have impacted Dentistry in multiple aspects. Dental education now benefits from GenAI models by enabling students to address numerous questions through intuitive prompts, receiving instant answers. Dental healthcare practitioners utilize GenAI to gather knowledge quickly and efficiently, improving patient care. In dental research, GenAI supports activities such as academic writing and the discovery of new drugs and therapies. In this narrative review, we summarize the current state of GenAI in dentistry as of 2025, define GenAI models, describe their multiple generation modalities, and discuss their current and potential applications in Dentistry. Finally, we describe the challenges these new technologies impose in our area.