ANN ARBOR, MI and ATLANTA, GA, April 9, 2019 – Hosted by The Insurance Insider, the InsiderTech Chicago conference gathers insurance industry incumbents to discuss the impact of insurtech on the industry.
Andrew Robinson, Groundspeed’s Co-CEO, was a keynote speaker at this event and The Insurance Insider wrote up a report on his presentation, as shown below.
Tech will woo next generation to insurance: execs
Embracing technology and innovation in insurance is critical if the industry hopes to attract young talent, said Groundspeed Analytics co-CEO Andrew Robinson on Wednesday.
In his keynote address at the InsiderTech Chicago conference, Robinson noted that InsurTech solutions have already begun to solve problems in the insurance space.
Groundspeed, which is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, uses artificial intelligence and data science to sharply reduce administration expenses to increase the efficiency – and effectiveness – of underwriting and analytics.
Many industry problems are fit to be solved by the incorporation of technology, Robinson said, presenting a clear opportunity for legacy players to recruit new talent.
Robinson specifically noted the success of innovators in the personal lines space – and highlighted the opportunity for similar success with commercial carriers.
“The complex world of commercial insurance is ripe and very challenging,” he explained.
Robinson and two other keynote speakers – Pat Ryan, founder of Ryan Specialty Group and former Aon head, and XL Innovate partner Martha Notaras – said small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) insurance is a particularly compelling area for innovation.
“Even Berkshire Hathaway is hedging its bets” on SME, according to Ryan, who referenced the company’s newly unveiled THREE product aimed at simplifying small business insurance.
SME coverage is “more than a market gap”, Notaras noted. She likened the traditional marketplace to “shopping in the men’s store and cutting down to a child’s size”.
However, innovation that aims to “disintermediate” the value chain by altering or eliminating the broker is a “flawed strategy”, Ryan cautioned.
“The role of the agent and broker is timeless,” he said.
