As carriers continue to step back from markets at the mercy of climate change, the next generation of insurance professionals will step up to lead the industry forward. 2025 will be the year of the modern insurer, forecast experts from global leader in AI and data SAS, representing a defining moment when innovation-focused carriers will decisively confront the industry’s greatest challenges – and reap the benefits with improved speed, productivity and trustworthy results.
But what defines the modern insurer? While Cary, N.C.-based SAS’ thought leaders offer differing visions for the year ahead in the wake of the company’s recent future of insurance study, #Insurance2040 with Economist Impact, they agreed on one thing. The modern insurer will implement rising technologies to enact an industry disruption: a revival of trust for consumers and regulators alike in an era fraught with risk.
Here are a few of the predictions:
All hail omni policies and the trust comeback
“Insurers need a disruptive, trust-centric rebrand to weather current reputational risk and invest in the continuation of the industry. I predict that, by the end of 2025, a major global carrier will announce plans to introduce ‘omni policies.’ By purchasing an omni policy, the customer will pay one premium, on one AI-powered policy, that provides coverage in every applicable insurable domain, no matter the risk that individual presents. An all-encompassing blanket of protection, always on tap.”
– Franklin Manchester, Principal Global Insurance Advisor, SAS
Insurers and customers put a price on data privacy
“In 2025, insurers will offer a bold new model: ‘Data for discounts.’ Customers who opt in will share personal information like health metrics, driving habits and spending patterns with carriers, who will fine-tune risk profiles to offer hyper-personalized pricing. For consumers who consent, lower costs await – but costs could climb for the privacy-conscientious. When the choice between data sharing or protecting private data directly impacts coverage affordability, consumers, carriers and regulators will have to decide: can you put a price on privacy?”
– Alena Tsishchanka, EMEA and AP Senior Insurance Practice Leader, SAS
Wearable, shareable health data
“With features like real-time ECG monitoring, stress tracking and sleep analysis, wearable technology can give insurers deeper insights into the health of policyholders, allowing for more accurate predictions. This individualized approach represents a significant departure from traditional methods that rely on static actuarial models and historical data to estimate mortality risk.
“European insurers are already rewarding users of health-focused wearables, and insurers worldwide will follow suit. However, the integration of wearable data will put security and data ethics in focus. The transformative potential of personal data will only be realized if insurers build consumer trust and ensure secure and ethical usage of this most sensitive data.”
– Amanda Wise, Principal Product Marketing Manager, SAS
‘Silver Tsunami’ comes for insurance
“Based on age demographics, the industry can anticipate that roughly half of insurance professionals will retire over the next five years – and an astonishing amount of industry expertise lost. Industry leaders will step up recruitment of their next-generation successors and start looking at how AI and emerging technologies can help bridge the talent gap. These up-and-comers will sharpen their tech skillsets by investing in data fluency and other technical training to differentiate themselves and put their careers on the fast-track.”
– James Ruotolo, Senior Director of Financial Services, SAS
Synthetic data levels up the actuarial pricing process
“Advanced insurers will gain a competitive advantage by leveling up the actuarial pricing process. They’ll no longer rely solely on internal data, some of which may contain outdated information. Instead, these insurers’ actuaries will increasingly generate synthetic data to augment their existing data sets and integrate external market data. The result? Synthetic data-forward firms will be equipped to deploy faster, more accurate pricing that’s more aligned with market sensitivities. They’ll increase their profitability – and pull ahead of those further behind in their GenAI journeys.”
– Thorsten Hein, Insurance Lead in Risk, Fraud and Compliance Solutions, SAS
Explore the future of AI across industries
Wondering what 2025 will bring in insurance and adjacent industries like banking, the public sector and more? Curious where you fall on the AI optimism spectrum? Visit SAS’ technology and AI predictions homepage to take the “predictions barometer” quiz and explore more forecasts and trends.
