Risk Digitization Tops Tech Priorities for Insurers, Cytora Survey Finds
A recent survey conducted by Cytora, a digital risk processing platform, has spotlighted risk digitization as the leading strategic technology priority for major commercial insurers in North America and the UK. The findings underscore a significant industry-wide shift towards digital transformation.
The study, which polled 200 senior leaders from global insurance firms, revealed that 79% of respondents identified risk digitization as their primary technology investment focus over the next two years. This emphasis on digitizing risk intake, renewals, claims, and policy adjustments surpassed other technologies such as catastrophe (CAT) models, customer relationship management (CRM) systems, and policy administration platforms.
Respondents cited several key advantages to risk intake digitization:
- Revenue Growth (22%)
- Ability to process higher transaction volumes (19%)
- Improved service to brokers and customers (17%)
When asked about the leading sources of inefficiency within their organizations, the majority (62%) pointed to the manual extraction of data from intake documents. Other challenges included disparate risk processing workflows (55%) and a lack of unified data flow (52%).
The survey also highlighted increasing financial investment in response to industry demand for streamlined processes, automation, and advanced analytics. Over a quarter of industry leaders (26%) estimated that their organizations had invested at least £500,000 in AI initiatives within the past year, with 11% reporting investments exceeding £1 million. Projected investments for 2025 are even higher, with 28% anticipating at least £500,000 in AI spending and 17% projecting investments of £1 million or more.
The online survey, conducted between February 24th and March 5th, 2025, offers valuable insights into the decision-making processes of C-suite executives, directors, and senior managers across leading insurance organizations. Increased efficiency was the most significant potential benefit of AI initiatives, according to 59% of respondents.
Additional benefits included:
- Improved customer and broker satisfaction (44%)
- More connected systems and data integration (41%)
- Better understanding of risk (35%)
The survey also assessed the impact of risk digitization on employee roles. Increased productivity was cited by 67% of respondents, followed by higher talent retention and attraction (65%), increased upskilling opportunities (60%), and enhanced morale (57%).
Richard Hartley, CEO at Cytora, noted the significance of the findings. “The message from the survey is clear: risk digitization is a top board level priority for the commercial insurance industry. Insurers that effectively harness and scale AI to digitize risk workflows will have an enduring and growing advantage in the years ahead. Risk digitization unlocks the path to a zero marginal cost operating model, progressively decoupling premium growth from expense growth and reinforcing decision-advantage,” said Hartley.
