Wednesday, APRIL 29 | 8:30 aM
AI and MGAs – full speed ahead or third-mover advantage?
The 3.5 years since Chat GPT landed have been a rollercoaster. The world hasn’t ended yet, nor are we all unemployed. However it is clear that AI is not just a fad. Equally clear is that its ubiquitousness makes it harder not easier to predict its impact.
Within insurance some things are becoming clear. Running pilots is easy; scaling is not. Good data is critical; but even that has bias. Initiatives are typically driven centrally; but the exciting ideas are coming from the front lines.
The questions for MGAs reflect those you’ve been considering for years across data, tech and ops:
- Does a lack of legacy systems and historic data speed you up or slow you down?
- Does your narrow focus (compare to large carriers) bring advantage or disadvantage?
- Will there be compression of the value chain? And if so, in your favour or at your expense?
In this presentations, we’ll cover some of the new AI buzzwords such as Agentic AI and Sociopathic Intelligence, while reflecting on the risks and opportunities for MGAs, and considering which next steps are ‘right-now, no-regret’ versus where it may make sense to wait a bit longer and see how things evolve in the tech, the regulatory oversight, and the actions of the rest of the insurance ecosystem.
Paolo Cuomo is an executive director at Gallagher Re where he works with MGAs, carriers and investors to match risk to capital. He joined in 2022, building on a dozen years’ experience in the London insurance market, working for Brit, Beazley, Charles Taylor and Boston Consulting Group. Paolo is a strong believer in the importance of technology for enhancing the insurance process in underwriting, claims and back-office functions. Over the past decade Paolo has launched new Lloyd’s syndicates, supported the creation of the Lloyd’s Innovation Lab, and co-founded InsTech, the world’s leading Insurtech community.
He is torn on AI – aware of its huge potential impact, but also the inevitable social upheavals if that impact plays out at speed. As a senior advisor to the InnoEthics initiative he is constantly considering how the ethical aspects of this “mechanical intelligence” can be considered.
Paolo sits on the Insurance Institute of London’s Cyber and Tech committee and is a Liveryman of both the Worshipful Company of Insurers (WCI) and the Worshipful Company of Engineers.
Paolo spent the first decade of his career in McKinsey’s Global Business Technology Office. He holds an MEng from Imperial College London, and an MBA from Kellogg School of Management, and is a Fellow of the Institute of Engineering and Technology.