Sixfold, a AI underwriting company working with global insurers, has published new research revealing that AI is fuelling optimism rather than scepticism among underwriting professionals.
The study, titled 'The Future of Underwriting: AI Adoption, Workforce Trends, and Industry Optimism', independently surveyed 543 underwriting executives and underwriters across the US and Europe. It found that 99% of underwriting executives feel more enthusiastic about the industry's future thanks to AI. Among underwriters, 86% share that heightened excitement about the profession's direction and would recommend underwriting as a career today, while 79% believe they are ready for what lies ahead.
This positivity is being underpinned by tangible commercial results. All of the executives surveyed reported that AI has improved their teams' speed, quality of work, or both. In addition, 92% said the technology has led to stronger underwriting decisions, and 85% noted it is enabling teams to process a greater volume of submissions. Four in five leaders also stated that AI is already generating a clear return on investment or expressed confidence that it will.
The findings also signal a shift in how insurers should approach AI spending, with technology increasingly playing a role in the battle for talent. Over three quarters of underwriting executives voiced concern about recruiting and keeping experienced underwriters, and 77% fear staff could depart for firms with more advanced AI capabilities. Underwriters echoed this sentiment, with 72% saying an employer's AI strategy would factor into a future career decision.
Despite the momentum, the research indicates challenges persist. Although most underwriters said AI has strengthened their relationships with brokers and agents, eight in ten still spend anywhere from 30 minutes to four hours pursuing missing information from brokers on a single risk. Meanwhile, 66% of executives said they would like greater visibility into the quality of risks arriving from each broker and agent, pointing to where the next wave of value could emerge.
Sixfold founder and CEO Alex Schmelkin said, 'It might surprise the industry to hear how excited underwriters are about AI, but it's what we're hearing from our customers everyday. They've moved past ingestion engines and basic triage support. What they want is AI that aligns with how they actually think about risk and can take on some of their work. The insurers ready to put that into production will outpace their competitors.'
Sixfold co-founder and COO Jane Tran said, 'Not long ago when we spoke with underwriting leaders, they were concerned about how their underwriters would react to AI entering their workflow. Now the conversation has completely turned. Leaders tell us they're worried about losing their best underwriters to competitors with stronger AI capabilities.
'Underwriters are saying the same thing; where and how a company invests in AI genuinely affects whether they stay or go. Many organizations haven't fully woken up to that yet but their AI strategy is their retention strategy.'