Artificial Intelligence Coming to Auto Glass--and Insurance

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is coming to the auto glass and insurance industries. Case in point, Mitchell International is exploring a computer vision application that uses image recognition to confirm repair vs. replace decisions. This is according to the company's 2017 Third Quarter Industry Trends Report. Computer vision researchers at Carnegie Mellon demonstrated the ability to detect and understand small movements. Mitchell says in its report, "Instead of an automotive repairer just getting guidance on the next step in a given repair procedure, they could get real time evaluation of ancillary problems detected by computer vision. In fact, in February 2018, glassBYTEs reported that Autoglass, a vehicle glass repair and replacement company based in the UK and owned by Belron, tested the latest AI technology to assess the severity of vehicle glass damage. The company says this can be used to determine whether customers require a repair or a full replacement. An article written by Olivier Baudox, vice president, Global Product Management, auto physical damage solutions, authored an article in the Mitchell Report, saying that AI will be used in the future of auto glass claims workflow--first, the concept has to gain traction. "With rapidly changing conditions that put more drivers and more complex cars on the road, it's no surprise that auto claim value and loss costs have increased substantially in recent years," says Ryan Mandell, director of performance Consulting for Mitchell Auto Physical Damage Solutions. He adds that AI is ready to tackle these increased workloads with specific solutions. Baudoux's article goes on to say that "once the meaningful data is identified, AI can help to elevate the right information in a way that assists and expedites workflow processes.