I’m back in Bristol after two and a half weeks across the US.
A great trip, loved seeing so many folks, so much of the country, and super pumped (that’s how I talk now) about a couple of huge partnership opps. More in Substack if you’d like to read.
The narrative is pretty simple. There’s never been more intelligence available to this industry and never been more noise to wade through. Whilst AI has made it easier than ever to feel certain, it hasn’t made it easier to be right.
At Sønr we’ve spent ten years accumulating data that nobody else has. Couple that with unique domain experience and exposure to the market at every level. The result is an always-on intelligence layer built specifically for insurance. Enterprise-proven, now open to the whole market. And the beta is live.
Oh and we (well, I) came second. Which, shortly after, I was reminded is the same as first loser!
If you haven’t already, join the waitlist at sonr.global/2-0.
And to those already signed up… we’re getting to you, I promise!
Seemingly it can’t all be about me. Let’s get into some news.
Claims, care & showing up
“One third of bereaved customers in the UK feel unsupported during claims, and over half would choose an insurer based on bereavement support.”
Apparently.
I 100% agree with the first, less sure about the second…but hey, maybe I fall into the other 50%?!
Either way, great to see Zurich partnering with Empathy – a direct response to that gap, turning experience into a competitive lever. This is what differentiation looks like when it actually matters.
Alright, not quite insurance but super interesting to see Revolut has launched GlobalHire.
Extending its push into infrastructure this is an Employer of Record model that bundles hiring, payroll and compliance into one system. And beautifully timed as we employ our first person in the US, it removes the friction of global expansion and positions Revolut as more of an operating system for businesses.
Its AI agents can now open accounts, issue cards and move money across platforms like ChatGPT, Claude +. It is one of the first real examples of financial infrastructure being built for autonomous systems.
I read a Reddit post of a chap using Meow. It definitely gets you thinking…
“Now I manage my business banking with Claude for bill pay, invoicing, checking balances all through a conversation. The AI agent queues up transfers I approve later but I also loaded a corporate card with $200 so the agent can spend without extra approval. It’s an AI native bank account that works through MCP with Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini etc
The tier 1 bank stuff is cool but agentic banking where you open a bank account with AI and manage business finances with ChatGPT or Claude without ever touching a dashboard is the shift nobody is talking about, basically a bank account for AI agents not just AI for banks. Anyone else here using AI agents for actual business banking automation?”
Feels niche now, but will be standard play soon.
Motors, models & marketplaces
You may have seen the video of Sten Saar doing the LinkedIn rounds announcing this one.
Sompo has backed Zego as part of a $28m round, alongside a partnership to bring telematics-based insurance into Japan.
It is a nice combination of incumbent scale and insurtech capability, and another signal that AI-led underwriting models are going global.
And another from the UK – Compare the Market has introduced a conversational pre-quote experience using ChatGPT to estimate pricing before users enter full journeys.
It simplifies early-stage shopping and reduces friction at the top of the funnel (which is where a lot of battles are now being won).
Nice.
Trucking, tech & the real economy
In the UK, Flockis back in the news having launched into haulage in partnership with Admiral, bringing its connected insurance model into a sector worth £13.5bn annually.
In the US, Prestige Trucking Insurance has acquired Mulligan after first using the platform internally to automate quoting, proposals and commission workflows.
It is a clear example of distribution players leaning into technology and then deciding to own it.
And then there’s Sedgwick. I really like this one.
Innovation that feels a long way from AI, but solves a very real problem.
They’ve launched a 24/7 Accident Response Team, deploying adjusters directly to the scene of commercial trucking incidents. The focus is speed, early intervention, and getting control before costs escalate.
A very good reminder that the answer isn’t always more tech.
Claims get structured
Our friends at Atrium have deployed Sofix’s BrokerBrief to convert fragmented claim inputs into structured, continuously updated summaries.
It removes friction at the earliest stage of claims handling and gives teams a clearer view of what is happening. Super cool (and handily, exactly where AI delivers immediate value).
Underwriting, upgraded
I don’t think this one is older than last week. Apologies if it is.
Munich Re has integrated Sixfold into its Realytix Zero platform, creating a more automated, end-to-end underwriting workflow.
Submissions are enriched, scored and prioritised automatically, allowing underwriters to focus on decision-making rather than data gathering. And another Signal50 good news story from our Beyond Boundaries report which is always great to see.
And finally, Kingstone is using ZestyAI’s wildfire risk modelling as it expands into California, applying property-level analytics to manage exposure in a complex market.
Underwriting is becoming increasingly granular, and this is what that looks like in practice.
What else I’ve been seeing
There’s also been a load of product innovation coming out this week.
Guidewire, Hippo, Vertafore, Origami Risk and COVU are all pushing AI directly into live workflows. Governance, time savings, operating leverage. Proper deployment.
It really seems to be no longer about whether AI works. It’s about where it sits, how it’s controlled, and what it actually delivers day to day.
Alongside that, specialist data partnerships continue to do a lot of the heavy lifting.
