How Insurance Companies Are Coping with Digital Transformation - Knowledge@Wharton

The insurance industry, no stranger to gauging risk, is facing one of its most profound disruptions in decades. Artificial intelligence, machine learning, Internet of Things, blockchain, data analytics and other emerging technologies are enabling many startups to nip at parts of their businesses. Incumbent insurers still have the advantage of institutional knowledge and regulatory expertise, as well as robust cash flows. But they can't sit still. Recognizing the technological winds of change, Reinsurance Group of America (RGA), one of the largest global reinsurers, created RGAX in 2015 to incubate and launch new products and services as its insurer clients seek to maintain their competitive advantages. RGAX CEO Dennis Barnes recently spoke to Knowledge@Wharton about the opportunities and roadblocks to digital transformation. An edited transcript of the conversation follows.