CROF ERI 2017 – Autonomous Machines Position Paper

Autonomous machines increasingly feature in business’s and people’s everyday lives. With exponential advances expected in the next few years in artificial intelligence, robotics and data-supporting infrastructure, autonomous machines are set to become even more prevalent.

In this publication, the Emerging Risks Initiative (ERI) of the CRO Forum aims to summarize the main issues that the re/insurance industry currently faces as a result of advances in the use of autonomous machine technology. Presented in instructive, simple terms and illustrated with many practical examples the paper discusses both (1) the delegation of decisions to machines and the resulting impact on corporate Landscape and processes, and (2) impacts on re/insurance underwriting risks.

The full extent of impacts from autonomous machines on the re/insurance industry is still difficult to assess. Whilst some of the vulnerabilities are already apparent, it is clear that the opportunities offered by these new technologies are immense. However, with such a level of uncertainty and the potential for significant impacts, autonomous machines still represent a major emerging risk for the re/insurance industry.