AI will change reinsurance forever

“Advances are going to occur much, much faster,” declares Arndt Gossmann, chief executive officer of generative artificial intelligence (AI) software house DGTAL, setting the stage for the transformative power of AI in the reinsurance industry.

“AI is perfect to identify trends within information, information locked up in documents that otherwise have to be read by people.

“The reinsurance industry strives to get better and deeper information, while AI is all about improved and deeper processing of information.

“It’s quite obvious that this will be a paradigm change for the industry,” he said.

With these words, Gossmann paints a picture of an industry on the brink of a technological revolution. 

DGTAL’s journey in the AI space has been marked by significant milestones, particularly in the realm of non-life insurance. 

Its flagship solution, Driller, serves as a prime example of how AI is reshaping claims processing. “Driller acts as a digital claims cο-pilot by understanding, summarising and uncovering information accurately and fast from any claims document,” Gossmann explained. 

“By leveraging AI to detect trends early, companies could mitigate losses.”

“However, it’s not a miraculous piece of software, but rather a constantly evolving chain of software AI features that improves over time,” he added.

For Gossmann, it is clear that the implementation of AI is not a one-time investment but an ongoing process of refinement and adaptation.

The power of AI in reinsurance extends far beyond claims processing and Gossmann highlighted its potential in identifying emerging risks and trends, particularly in the face of increasing climate-related events. 

“AI helps the claims department, portfolio management, the actuarial department and in the underwriting process, which makes it extremely powerful to use,” he elaborated.

The predictive capability of AI will prove invaluable for reinsurance companies grappling with the uncertainties of climate change and other emerging risks. 

By leveraging AI to detect trends early, companies can mitigate losses and continuously and proactively adjust their strategies.

“AI needs both, industry experts and a new generation of tech professionals”

Successfully implementing AI in reinsurance is not without its challenges and Gossmann attributes DGTAL’s success to a unique blend of industry knowledge and technological expertise. 

“DGTAL is a group of very experienced insurance experts who befriended tech experts,” he explained. 

“That helped us translate our ideas, issues we always wanted to understand, into a very powerful technology. It also allows us to keep constantly close to the client.”

Gossmann’s insight offers a valuable lesson for reinsurance leaders: the key to successful AI implementation lies not just in acquiring cutting-edge technology, but in having the right mix of industry expertise and technological knowhow to translate that technology into practical, industry-specific solutions.

AI racing ahead

Explaining the DGTAL strategy further, Gossmann said: “We have been very focused from day one, looking only at P & C and health.

“In particular, we focus on claims. Our tech strategy includes both proprietary developments and open source models.”

Gossmann emphasised the importance of adaptability and continuous learning, saying: “Whatever you do, it should be something that can help you make more money or save money relatively quickly.

“The best advice to reinsurance companies at this point is to work intensely on preparing their own people and their own teams to be curious and open to creating AI projects, in order to learn from experience over time.”

The role of talent and skillsets in the future will be crucial for AI in reinsurance. “AI needs a completely different team of people. It’s not about replacing the current team, but about adding people with the right technology skills to give the insurance experts wings to fly.” 

Faster actions, less hype

Looking ahead, Gossmann expects the pace of change in the insurance industry to accelerate dramatically. 

“Reinsurance will look very different, and the industry may be surprised by the speed of change when looking back in five years’ time,” he said. 

“But we are still in the hype and exploratory phase. I would like to see more adoption than discussion on AI.” 

For reinsurance leaders, his message is clear: “Get started, the time to act is now, and companies that fail to adapt risk being left behind in an increasingly digital and data-driven landscape.”

As the industry stands on the cusp of this technological revolution, Gossmann’s words serve as both a warning and a call to action. The future of reinsurance is here, and it’s powered by AI.

Arndt Gossmann is the chief executive officer and co-founder of DGTAL. He can be contacted at: a.gossmann@dgtal.io

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