Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) has selected 12 startups and will partner with them to explore new ways to serve customers, create more frequent and meaningful interactions with them, and expand insurance horizons.
The startups were nominated as part of Zurich’s global startup tournament, the Zurich Innovation Championship. The competition, which is being held for the third time, received around 2,600 applications in four categories: insurance of the future, damage prevention and reduction, simplification and sustainability.
“The range of ideas we’ve received from start-ups from around the world has been incredible and gives us a glimpse of what tomorrow’s insurance could look like,” said Ericson Chan, Group Chief Information & Digital Officer. “Our winners have well thought out and innovative solutions and we look forward to developing them with them to bring new solutions to our customers and simplify the way we interact with them.”
Zurich is celebrating the company’s 150th anniversary this year, while the Zurich Innovation Championship looks to the future. The 12 selected startups explore solutions such as technologies to detect and prevent cyberbullying, smartphone access to video-based health and wellness monitoring, tools to measure and reduce the carbon footprint of companies and individuals, and automated claims processing using artificial intelligence and blockchain.
What’s next?
The start-ups are now working with Zurich to prove themselves further and develop an operational plan in a three-month accelerator. This stage is a new addition to this year’s competition. During the accelerator, the 12 start-ups will receive both financial and non-financial support, such as mentoring from Zurich executives and experts and access to concrete business cases. The successful ideas are then implemented in an implementation phase and, where possible, scaled globally.
“This phase is where things get really exciting as we work together to test, refine and execute solutions so that we can realize the most promising use cases together,” said Stuart Domingos, Head of Group Innovation.
The winners in each competition category are:
- Insurance of the Future – Insurance Reimagined: Caruso, Garanteasy, Keepers.ai
- Damage Prevention and Mitigation: Adapt Ready, Binah.ai, One Concern
- Simplification: Anagog, Democrance, LISA Insurtech
- Sustainability: Deedster, Dynamhex, Salient
Zurich is also in contact with other participants in this year(?) Zurich Innovation Championship around the world to explore opportunities for future collaboration.
