EVIDENT AI INDEX | INSURANCE
2026 Key Findings Report
ABOUT THE EVIDENT AI INDEX FOR INSURANCE
The Evident AI Index for Insurance ranks the AI maturity of North America and Europe’s largest insurers, revealing where AI capabilities are accelerating, and where advantages are beginning to build.
Read on to explore the key findings, or download the full report. You can also join us on 7 July for a live roundtable to unpack the results.
KEY FINDINGS
AI MATURITY RISES ACROSS THE SECTOR
The gap between the two frontrunners – Allianz and AXA – and the wider industry is narrowing as the capabilities that once set them apart become more widespread. In 2026, almost all of the 30 insurers improved their maturity score.
A LEADERBOARD RESHUFFLE
Allianz overtakes AXA to lead this year’s ranking, as just three of last year’s top-five insurers retained their position in the top-five. Behind Allianz and AXA, Manulife, Zurich and Liberty Mutual round out this year’s leaderboard.
AI TALENT GROWS DESPITE A SHRINKING WORKFORCE
AI-specialist roles grew 32% year-on-year and now represent almost one in 50 employees, even as the broader workforce shrunk by 2.2%. Growth in AI Development and AI Software Implementation roles points to a movement away from large-scale construction of data pipelines and infrastructure to business-by-business integration and optimization of AI use cases.
AI TALENT STRATEGIES DIVERGE BY BUSINESS MODEL
Growth in AI Development roles is driven primarily by Composite insurers and Reinsurers. They operate across multiple business segments, geographies, and risk classes, requiring greater capacity to build and refine complex risk models. P&C and Life insurers show greater depth in AI Software Implementation, reflecting a stronger focus on near-term improvements to operational workflows.
AS WAR FOR TALENT ESCALATES, HIRING INITIATIVES KICK INTO HIGH GEAR
With AI training now widespread, insurers are turning their attention toward external talent pipelines. 26 of 30 insurers have AI-specific training programs in place, 25 now post AI internships (+9 YoY) and 19 post AI or data science graduate roles (+6 YoY).Â
CHALLENGERS SHIFT RESEARCH FOCUS TO PRACTICAL ISSUES WITH AI DEPLOYMENT
AI-focused research output has steadily increased across the Index, with authors from 24 of 30 insurers publishing in the field. Growth reflects both sustained output from the “Established” group (largely European insurers), and rising participation from the “Challengers” (North American insurers). As the “Established” group’s share declines, authority over the AI research agenda is becoming more distributed, and increasingly focused on practical challenges with AI deployment.
AI INVESTMENT IS MOVING FROM INSURTECH TOWARD DEPLOYMENT INFRASTRUCTURE
In 2025, AI-centric transactions overtook broader investments in tech-/data-focused firms, accounting for over 50% of dealflow. The underlying trend points toward growing investment in new data sources and automated analysis that enhance actuarial models, plus operational capabilities that streamline the manual “plumbing” behind core insurance workflows.
MOST RAI PARTNERSHIPS NOW SHOW EVIDENCE OF OUTCOMES
RAI-specific partnerships have doubled year-over-year, while those producing case studies, use cases, or joint outcomes have nearly tripled. As insurers rapidly scale their AI efforts, there is a simultaneous need to build governance structures around that growth. The latest examples of this point to emerging themes such as stronger internal model governance, more transparent enterprise workflows, and customer-facing tools for managing AI-related risk.
THE ABILITY TO EVIDENCE OUTCOMES IS BECOMING A MARKER OF MATURITY
As AI deployment moves beyond discrete tasks, evidencing impact is becoming a key marker of maturity. 20 of 30 insurers now report at least one AI use case with outcomes (+8 YoY), but disclosure remains concentrated among the top-10 insurers, with Allianz, AXA, Manulife, Travelers, and Zurich accounting for 48% of well-documented sector use cases.
THE FRONTIER OF AI WILL ENABLE BETTER INSURANCE DECISIONS
The sector is still early in its AI maturity curve: 49% of disclosed use cases remain narrow in scope, focused on speed, cost reduction, and process efficiency. The more advanced 8% point to where maturity is headed in 2027: toward agentic reasoning, improved decision quality, and connected workflows.
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2026 Evident AI Index for Insurance Results
Join us to unpack the results of the 2026 Evident AI Index for Insurance and explore how the industry's frontrunners are adopting, scaling and embedding AI into their operations.
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