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The Global Trends Shaping The Insurance Industry in 2020The Insurance Industry has been at the forefront of innovation. Companies areinvesting heavily in new technologies and applications to catalyze thisgrowth. Maintaining a fair understanding of the top trends in Insurtech isessential to securing the long-term viability of any insurance endeavour. Notonly to keep up with industry standards and expectations, but to ensurecustomer satisfaction. This article aims to highlight some of the key trendswe expect to see in 2020, many of which will follow into the coming decade.#### 2020 Trends and Our SourcesThis data comes from our own internal analysis. It is pulled from our tacitknowledge in the industry and comprehensive interviews conducted with ouranchor and corporate partners from our Insurtech program. Last year ourVenture team spoke with over a thousand startups from all over the world, andthese conversations served us a great data source for this article.VIDEO ## Life and Health Insurance Trends for 2020 The life and health space in Insurtech is perhaps one of the most promisingsectors in the insurance industry. With the advent of modern technology thatcaters to specific individuals, we now have access to processing power toanalyze the market and optimize products and services. This ranges fromcustomized chatbots to real-time data streams through the IoT. Although thesefields may be relatively new to the industry, they are gaining ever increasingpopularity and recognition. These trends are expected to last through thecoming year, and possibly beyond.### 1. Emphasizing Customer ExperienceHeeding the direction of startups and innovators in the field, insurers shouldstart to put more emphasis on updating their approach to customer experience.Creating user-friendly platforms will appeal to the latest generations ofconsumers. This is made easier by automating the entire process of theinsurance interaction, from selecting and purchasing an insurance to claimsprocessing and more.For example, AI startups have been able to accomplish advancements in computervision, which has the potential in the medical field of the visual diagnosisof certain external illnesses like skin diseases. Machine learning has made itpossible to make advancements in natural language processing, which can beused to create programs like chatbots. This will make it possible forcustomers to ask insurance and medical questions without the need for humaninteraction, making the process more accurate, cost effective, and faster.### 2. Accessing the Internet of Things (IoT)Interest in the IoT has remained popular and constant. The IoT accesses dataabout customer behavior and individual variables, which helps to furtheroptimize and refine products and services. AI may also be used to analyze thisdata and recognize new and never before seen trends, which in turn helps uscome up with other outcomes and develop new ideas. Wearable devices track anindividual’s movements, habits, and other health facts and create acomprehensive dataset to pull from (such as heart rate at work or sleeppatterns). Further, we can cross this data with medical information to reachconclusions we were not able to reach before.### 3. Data Sources and Holistic DatasetsData management startups have become an ever-increasing entity in theprofessional market and provide us with access to datasets we may never haveencountered in the past. Data management has itself become a booming industryand has maintained a constant interest to Insurtech. This is of course relatedto the previously mentioned IoT, which gathers the raw data, but also pertainsto new methods of data analysis and processing.### 4. Connecting Data Management to AIThe new and exciting relationship between data management and AI provides avariety of new possibilities. This interesting combination has made itpossible to form new insight into older fields like medicine. For example, tomake strides in early detection or prevention of certain diseases. Startupsseem to have a constant or rising interest in this in particular, offeringsolutions for early disease detection remotely or through wearables.### 5. Medical Apps gain value through remote approachesRemote tech can be used in a variety of versatile ways. For example, it canhelp to analyze and diagnose problems in a person’s microbiome and healthrelated issues that may arise from them. Most of this data comes from wearabledevices. This all serves to improve customer service, efficiency, andaccuracy, thereby improving the customer experience. Another example aretelemedicine apps that allow us to connect with the qualified doctors wheneverneeded, get a diagnosis and treatment plan online. In the hard times ofCOVID-19, these solutions are valuable if not critical.## Property and Casualty Insurance Trends for 2020 Property and casualty may be more tech driven than you’d expect. Advancementsin technology have made it possible for us to collect much more data fromcustomers and optimize our services accordingly, everything from automobile toproperty-aimed tech has made it possible to expand the scope of datacollection and analysis. These trends are some of the leaders in the field interms of consistent innovation and expected prevalence in the coming year.### 1. Growing IoT Data and AI AnalysisThe IoT and AI are not only applicable to the life and health sector, in asimilar way it has many applications to property and casualty as well. Forexample, the IoT has become an important part of a home environment for manyconsumers through products like Google Nest or other smart home devices.Mountain View’s startup Hippo in addition to the insurance policy offers a2-sensor smart home monitoring system to protect homes against fire, waterdamage and break-ins.All of these devices and technology have been able to gather valuable data onconsumer habits and their property management. AI can also help companies toanalyze this data in new and innovative ways.### 2. More Data Means the Rise of Data ManagementIoT is consolidating as a data source in the industry. Startups of the futurenow focus on new data sources, and we have seen a steady increase in thequantity of available data. These new data sources range from satelliteimagery to foot traffic, and much more. Now we have more data to work withand, therefore, more data to manage.### 3. Fintech and the Integration of APIThe financial sector has seen a marked increase in their awareness andwillingness to incorporate cutting-edge technology. With this rush towardsinnovation there has been a rise in the integration of APIs in new andexciting ways. Case in point: in January 2018, the UK implemented its OpenBanking Statement requiring the biggest banks to provide data to third partiesvia APIs. This initiative directly influenced the emergence of new innovativestartups and use cases around the industry. This decade will see increasedcompetition from outsiders and industry professionals alike.### 4. TelematicsTelematics, the partnering of telecommunications and information technology,has become a standard part of modern day-to-day life. As such, it already hasaccess to millions of customers. It is notable here that sectors like theautomobile industry, have exerted steady and consistent attention on theirtelematic technology.A great example is Voom Insurance. The company’s first product, SkyWatch.AI,leverages the power of machine learning to assess and mitigate risks andprovide on-demand insurance for thousands of drone pilots operating across theUS.Autobon is another telematics player that turns America’s existing semi-trucksinto safer and more efficient vehicles. They created their customTransportation Management System that integrates with vehicle telematics andautomates the highway portion of long-haul trips. They also offer a set ofcustom APIs like GPS Tracking, Real-Time Video Feedback, and DeliveryInformation.## ConclusionAs technology advances and becomes more integrated in modern life, we canexpect an ever changing stream of innovation. By paying attention to the toptrends and leading innovations, we are able to predict and adapt to newdevelopments in this growing and expanding industry. Through fair assessments,these trends are expected to continue or rise in 2020.At Plug and Play’s Insurtech accelerator we match large corporations with top-tier startups that are changing the future of the insurance industry. Join ourplatform today.