InsurTech Insights 2025: The Rise of Agentic AI and Task-Specific Tech

• June 11, 2025

By Dave Evans

When the 2025 InsurTech Insights conference convened in New York City last week, the big question was: Can a single year bring a noticeable difference in InsurTech? The answer, it turns out, is yes.

The dominant theme—unsurprisingly—was artificial intelligence (AI). But unlike in years past, the conversation was less about hype and more about practical application.

In the session “Targeting Insurance Distribution with Advanced Technology/Finding the Right Risk” Ken Gregg, CEO of Orion180, said “ease of doing business is really about the path of least resistance, and in that regard, technology is a multiplier of human capital. It should be viewed as an asset, not an expense.”

“Don’t start with the tech,” added Nick Carter, senior sales director at expert.ai. “Start with the problem. Then bring together the right stakeholders to scope the use case before applying technology.”

The message is clear: insurers and agents are no longer experimenting. They are implementing.

What truly marks a turning point is the emergence of a new concept: agentic AI. In the session “Beyond the Buzz: What Agentic AI Really Means for Insurance,” John Keddy, vice president of Insurance AI Strategy & Solutions, defined agentic AI as “a conductor orchestrating across systems, people, existing AI tools, video, and text.”

Unlike traditional AI, which is task-specific, agentic AI is goal-oriented. It autonomously scans environments, gathers data, and completes workflows with minimal supervision. The impact? Everyone, from underwriters to brokers, can now benefit from a digital “assistant” that accelerates tasks and elevates human decision-making.

Panelists also emphasized that these types of changes are happening now—not in years, but in 90- and 180-day increments.

Still, a note of caution echoed around AI: The pace of development is swift, and balancing enthusiasm with intentional learning is key. As AI capabilities grow, insurers and distributors must grow their understanding in parallel to use the tools wisely and effectively.

This year’s conference continued to debunk the myth that technology will replace insurance agents, making it clear that agents are not becoming obsolete—they’re evolving.

Expert speakers at the conference emphasized that the agent’s core offerings of professional judgment and risk guidance remain irreplaceable. In fact, AI is helping to remove the administrative burdens that once distracted agents from higher-value advisory work. Data captured through client interactions can now be organized and customized to meet specific customer needs more effectively than ever before.

The “Agents of Change” panel explored how technology is more important than ever. As seasoned industry professionals near retirement, while customer bases shift economically, culturally and generationally, AI can help bridge gaps when paired with human empathy and insight.

Meanwhile, the session “Crisis in Claims: Tackling Nuclear Verdicts and Social Inflation” unpacked how InsurTech, such as AI, can even help with the industry’s ongoing challenges with legal system abuse. 

AI can be applied to the claims process to flag potentially problematic cases earlier—helping insurers respond faster, communicate better and even mitigate loss exposure. Some carriers are using these tools to reduce litigation by offering faster and more transparent resolutions, making attorney involvement less necessary.

Still, the retirement of experienced claims professionals is creating a talent gap, and aggressive attorney advertising continues to shape public perception negatively. Here, too, AI can help correct the imbalance by organizing data more clearly to equip the insurance industry to rebuild trust with consumers and juries alike.

Dave Evans is a senior associate with insurance marketing firm Aartrijk, based in Fairfax, Virginia.