Sam Evans, Partner at Eos Ventures, sat down with Tracxn for VC to discuss how artificial intelligence and data are fundamentally reshaping the insurance industry, and what that means for the startups and investors building within it.
Drawing on his background leading the global deal advisory business for insurance at KPMG, where he worked on more than $75 billion in transactions across Australia, Hong Kong, Switzerland, and the UK, Sam explained how his experience advising the world’s largest insurers convinced him that insurance was ripe for a dedicated venture capital approach. Despite being a $6 trillion global industry, insurance has historically lagged behind other financial services sectors in technological adoption, a gap that Sam argues is now creating significant opportunity for well-positioned startups.
On AI and data, Sam outlined how the most meaningful innovation is taking place across underwriting, claims, distribution, and risk management, with technology enabling insurers to price risk more precisely, settle claims faster, and reach customers in ways that were previously uneconomical. He was clear that the strongest founders in the space are those who combine deep insurance domain expertise with a genuine understanding of where technology can move the needle, rather than applying AI as a layer on top of an otherwise unchanged business model.
Sam also spoke about the growing importance of partnerships between insurtechs and incumbent carriers, noting that the most successful companies in the Eos portfolio have built collaborative rather than purely disruptive relationships with the broader insurance ecosystem. He outlined what the firm looks for in early-stage founders, emphasising the value of operators with hands-on experience of the insurance sector and a clear thesis on how technology can improve loss ratios, expense ratios, or the customer experience in a measurable way.
Looking further ahead, Sam reflected on how the industry could evolve over the next decade as AI matures, suggesting that the boundaries between risk prevention, risk mitigation, and risk transfer may become increasingly blurred as real-time data makes it possible for insurers to intervene before losses occur rather than simply responding to them.
Watch the full interview: Tracxn for VC on YouTube
