AI is reshaping the workforce, but not in the ways people expected; recent data shows that the companies investing the most in AI are actually increasing their headcount, including among junior staff.
Insurers are finding that these less-experienced staffers are able to accelerate their career growth with AI assistance, making them stronger hires in the long-term. But the people getting the most benefit from AI in their day-to-day work may be managers, according to Gartner data.
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AI spending linked to 10.2% headcount growth at top-investing firms
Heavy AI spenders are hiring more, not less, according to new research from Ramp and Revelio Labs analyzing 21,559 U.S. companies. Firms in the top AI-spending tier saw headcount rise 10.2% in the two years after adoption, including a 12% jump in entry-level workers. Finance and insurance rank among the highest AI-spending sectors. Separately, PwC found U.S. bank AI job postings rose 77.4% in 2025, with 88% of those roles focused on AI users rather than model developers — a signal that domain expertise and process knowledge matter more than technical AI credentials when building out teams.
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AI reshapes underwriting roles and speeds up quote delivery
Insurers that haven't adopted AI in underwriting are already stagnating, a gap that will show clearly in financial results within a year, according to Cytora President Juan de Castro. The pressure is immediate: five-day quote turnarounds are no longer viable. AXA XL reviews clients' AI policies, model choices, data practices and human-review protocols before binding cyber risks, reflecting how AI adoption is becoming an underwriting evaluation criterion itself. At Scor, AI is freeing underwriters from data processing to focus on risk analysis. Junior staff stand to benefit most, with career paths shifting toward portfolio-level oversight rather than individual risk review.
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73% of productive AI users are managers, leaving agents behind
Despite sustained investment in AI, most insurance agents use it only for isolated tasks — not embedded workflows — and are largely left to self-direct adoption, according to Cake and Arrow's "The Connective Thread" report. Compounding the gap, Gartner data shows 73% of highly productive AI users are managers or executives, and 19% of employees reported no time savings from AI in Q1 2026. Only 27% of executives report a comprehensive AI strategy, and just 20% say staff is truly prepared. Gartner warns that by 2027, organizations without a people-focused AI strategy risk losing top talent to competitors. The path forward: replace adoption metrics with ROI indexes measuring depth of use, and build tools around agents' actual workflows.
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P&C digital assistant adoption rebounds to 83%, Keynova finds
After dropping from 92% to 67% in 2025, digital assistant adoption among 12 major P&C carriers has rebounded to 83% in 2026, per Keynova Group's Q2 Online Insurance Scorecard. The pattern reflects an ongoing calibration of support models; carriers are iterating on the mix of live, assistant-based and self-service options rather than committing to a single approach. Sixty percent of website assistants escalate to live support after no more than two failed answer attempts, and two-thirds offer direct live chat access. Progressive, Nationwide and USAA ranked highest overall. Back-end AI deployment — particularly in underwriting and claims — remains more prevalent than customer-facing applications.
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How independent agents can measure TV ad ROI correctly
AI-driven production tools and commitment-free connected TV inventory have made television advertising accessible to independent agents and brokers at budgets comparable to Google Search spending. But affordability isn't the core challenge; attribution is. Unlike paid search, TV builds brand recognition over weeks or months before a consumer enters an active shopping cycle, making last-touch attribution models misleading. Branded search volume tracked via Google Search Console is the most reliable near-term signal, supplemented by dedicated phone numbers or landing pages tied to specific creative. Campaigns targeting behavioral signals — homeownership status, recent mortgages, household income — sharpen attribution. Seasonal alignment with open enrollment and tax season improves measurable downstream activity.
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This roundup was created with AI assistance. A Digital Insurance editor reviewed each item before publication.
