AI in Insurance
Delaware wants to let AI run entire companies: what it means for insurers
A new proposed Artificial Intelligence Company raises a multitude of questions for anyone underwriting D&O, cyber or E&O
Delaware wants to create a new type of business entity that an AI agent would run day to day, and one of the most powerful committees in Congress wants to know who asked for it.
On October 26,House Oversight Committee chair James Comer (R-Ky.) announced an investigation into the proposal. In a four-page letter to Governor Matt Meyer, Comer asked Delaware to hand over, by November 9, its risk assessments, outside consulting agreements, draft bills and communications on the project going back to January 2025. The request even extends to internal AI chat logs.
The entity in question is the Artificial Intelligence Company, or AIC. Its AI agent could sign contracts, make business decisions and sue or be sued in the AIC's name. The person or company that funds it would not be liable for harm the agent causes, unless they left the AIC undercapitalized or used it for fraud or a willful violation of law.
Why Carrier AI Rollouts Stall: Three Types of Resistance Executives Should Treat Differently
Carrier executives can spend heavily on AI and still misdiagnose why adoption stalls. When a pilot works technically but employees use it inconsistently, hide their use or reject its output, leaders often reach for the same remedies: more training, another mandate or a better tool. Those responses can miss the problem because resistance to AI is not one behavior with one cause.
That matters more in insurance than in many industries. AI can touch underwriting, pricing, claims, fraud detection, customer communication and policy servicing. The NAIC’s Model Bulletin on the Use of Artificial Intelligence Systems by Insurers makes clear that consumer-impacting decisions supported by AI remain subject to existing insurance laws and regulatory standards, and it expects insurers to maintain governance and risk controls around those systems. In 2026, the NAIC is also piloting an AI Systems Evaluation Tool with 12 states to help regulators examine insurer governance, risk mitigation, data inputs and potentially high-risk AI models.
AI Gave You Hours Back. Are You Going To Spend Them On Your Customers?
Most insurance agency owners train their salespeople first and worry about building managers later.
Michael Schaefer does it the other way around. And he is willing to bet that AI is going to make his approach more affordable.
Nearly half of insurance agencies now use AI, up from 15% in 2024, according to the 2026 Agency Universe Study by Zeldis Research. That’s more than tripled in just two years. Writing marketing material was the most popular use, at 49%. Reading through policy coverage forms came in at 43%, while contract review trailed at 35%.
Beyond AI pilots: How insurers are putting AI agents to work
Insurers are using artificial intelligence to speed up underwriting, organize data and handle routine work.
But putting AI into daily operations requires more than adopting new tools. Companies must decide which tasks to automate, how to measure results and where employees need to remain in control.
Those were key points from an AM Best webinar held last week during ITC Vegas 2026.
The panel featured Arun Balakrishnan, CEO of technology provider Xceedance; Adrian Copland, chief operating officer at specialty insurer Ledgebrook; and Manish Chawla, executive vice president and chief information officer at IAT Insurance Group.
Balakrishnan said some Xceedance client deployments have produced efficiency gains of 35% to 40%, with some reaching 50%. Companies can use those gains to reduce costs or give employees more time to take on other work, he said.
Insurtech Lemonade introduces agentic AI insurance platform for personal AI agents
Insurtech Lemonade is preparing an agentic AI insurance platform that lets personal AI agents buy policies, adjust coverage, manage renewals through Lemonade OSUS insurtech company Lemonade is preparing to introduce an agentic AI insurance experience that will allow customers’ personal AI agents to purchase policies, manage coverage and handle claims by interacting directly with the insurer’s technology systems.
The new experience, built on Lemonade OS, is designed to support agent-to-agent transactions rather than requiring customers or their AI assistants to navigate conventional websites, submit forms or contact service representatives.
Research
2026 U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study - JD Power
- Customer satisfaction is improving for repairable claims as repair shop backlogs ease and cycle times improve
- 26% of auto insurance claims are total losses, creating a drag on customer satisfaction
- Among total loss claimants with loans on their vehicles, 25% receive payouts that are less than they currently owe
How satisfied are auto insurance customers in that moment of truth when they need to file a claim? According to the JD Power 2026 U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study,SM released today, that depends on whether the damage is repairable or not.
“A complex mix of trends are conspiring to make this an incredibly challenging market environment for managing auto insurance claims customer satisfaction,” said Mark Garrett, director of global insurance intelligence at JD Power. “On the positive side, rates are coming down and repair cycle times have improved dramatically, so customers who can have their vehicles fixed are showing high levels of satisfaction with the claims experience. However, persistent affordability challenges have many customers keeping vehicles longer or making changes to their policy, such as dropping rental coverage or taking on higher insurance deductibles. Additionally, many customers are upside down on their auto loans, which means the payoff in a total loss scenario can be less than they owe on their vehicles. All of these can make for a poor customer experience in the event of a total loss.”
InsurTech/M&A/Finance💰/Collaboration
Guidewire to Acquire hyperexponential for Up to $2.1 Billion
Guidewire (San Mateo, Calif.) has signed a definitive agreement to acquire hyperexponential (London) for $1.7 billion in cash, with up to an additional $400 million contingent on specified recurring-revenue targets.
Hyperexponential provides AI-native underwriting and pricing technology for commercial P&C insurance and is already a Guidewire PartnerConnect Technology Alliance Partner. The company says its technology supports underwriting decisions covering more than $75 billion in annual commercial P&C premium.
The acquisition brings together Guidewire’s core P&C platform and insurance data with hyperexponential’s capabilities spanning submission triage, risk assessment, pricing, rating and portfolio management.
Guidewire is positioning the combination around what it calls “agentic underwriting,” in which AI agents work alongside underwriters and actuaries to assess and price risk and support decisions across commercial and specialty business.
Cyber Risk
What insurance pros should know about the new PHP2SHELL cyber risk
This digital vulnerability could expose millions of websites to cyberattacks, data theft and costly business interruptions. Beazley experts explain the risks.
PHP2SHELL is a newly disclosed, critical cybersecurity vulnerability affecting PHP, the programming language used by approximately 70% of websites whose server-side language is known. Disclosed on October 21, 2026, PHP2Shell refers to two security flaws that could allow hackers to take control of vulnerable web servers or steal sensitive information without needing a username or password.
The development highlights the challenges businesses face in identifying and patching cybersecurity weaknesses before attackers exploit them.
PropertyCasualty360 recently connected with Melissa Carmichael, head of U.S. cyber at Beazley, and Francisco Donoso, chief product and technology officer at Beazley Security, to discuss potential losses, risk management gaps and steps insurers, brokers and policyholders can take to reduce exposures.
PC360: What is the PHP2SHELL attack, and why should P&C insurance professionals pay attention to it? INTERVIEW
Claims
TempusDirect Announces Strategic Investment from Aldrich Capital Partners to Accelerate Growth and Innovation in Claims Cost Containment
TempusDirect, a technology-enabled provider of third-party claims cost containment solutions serving the property and casualty insurance industry, today announced a strategic investment from Aldrich Capital Partners ("ACP"), a private equity firm focused on investing in technology-driven business services companies with strong leadership teams and significant growth potential.
"We founded TempusDirect ten years ago believing there was a better way to help insurance carriers manage the complexity and rising costs of third-party claims. Our success has been built on delivering measurable value to our clients, developing innovative solutions, and assembling an exceptional team. Our partnership with Aldrich marks an exciting next chapter, providing the resources and strategic support to accelerate innovation, expand our capabilities, and deliver even greater value to our carrier partners," said Greg Gaughan, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of TempusDirect.
Is AI Changing How Drivers Choose Collision Repair Shops? - Autobody News
A former Nissan network builder explains how AI could change shop selection, and what repairers can do now.
When a driver is involved in an accident, one of the first questions is where to take the vehicle for repairs. Traditionally, that decision has often been influenced by an insurance company’s direct repair program (DRP), a friend’s recommendation or an online search.
But what happens when the driver asks ChatGPT instead?
Mark Zoba, who spent 28 years at Nissan and helped establish the Nissan and Infiniti Certified Collision Repair Networks, believes artificial intelligence could fundamentally change how consumers find collision repair facilities.
Podcast Sponsor
Audio Version - 'Connected: The Podcast' --- Sponsored by Pulse Podcasts
The ‘Connected’ Podcast by Alan Demers and in dedication of Stephen Applebaum, is a condensed audio version of the day's ‘Connected' newsletter, a daily scan of all the happenings in the world of Insurance & InsurTech News.
Pulse Podcasts: Introduce a new way for your audience to hear your voice! We are a podcast creation service that helps businesses turn their written content, like blog posts and news articles, into beautiful podcasts. Our platform writes the script, records the voices, and mixes the audio to create engaging content for your audience. It's affordable and has super-fast turnaround!
LISTEN AND SUBSCRIBE BELOW