AI's role in underwriting life insurance

If you blink, you might miss how quickly AI and other technologies are changing multiple aspects of the insurance industry. One of those areas is life insurance, where it used to take days or even weeks to gather information to issue new policies. With the advent of AI, that timeframe is being shortened to mere minutes, and that is the subject of the latest DigIn podcast featuring Brett Laker, head of North America for Underwrite Me. Laker identifies trends he's seeing for 2025 and explains how AI will empower underwriters with data for even faster decision making.

As carriers identify ways to incorporate AI into their practice areas, Laker shares that the areas where he anticipates the greatest impact for AI in life insurance will fall into several areas: underwriting, claims and product development or mortality assumptions. "At the end of the day, the purpose of it is to improve the buying experience so that it's done in a way that's more transparent and understandable," he says.

There are also several challenges to be considered as companies implement AI as well. "So there's this fear of being left behind by peers and competitors, particularly if you're looking at the C-suite and they're getting recommendations from the subject matter experts, that can be really great because it can foster a faster adoption of new innovations. However, it can also be a problem because if you cut corners on assessing the impacts and the implications, then you might trip up over yourself," Laker adds. "So, I do worry about that. I feel like we are sort of scrambling right now to try and make it fit. And I feel like the AI side of things is a tad overplayed, although the potential is so huge."

Laker also discusses the opportunities he sees ahead for the life insurance industry, the benefits of bringing younger talent into the industry and how technology is changing the opportunities available. Listen to the full podcast here.