For its fourth symposium, held in Paris today, La Fabrique d’Assurance is bringing together representatives from every branch of insurance and the social economy. As well as facilitating discussion, the symposium is also an opportunity to share La Fabrique d’Assurance’s conclusions after a year spent thinking about the ethics of artificial intelligence (AI) in the insurance sector.
At its fourth annual symposium, La Fabrique d’Assurance continues to explore “the new frontiers of insurance” through two panel discussions on the topic “Science and consciousness: artificial intelligence and ethics”. The symposium brings together nearly 300 professionals from the insurance and mutual insurance sectors, provident, healthcare, research and economic institutions, and the political world* to debate major social issues and the future of the insurance sector.
Alexandre André, Chief Executive of La Fabrique d’Assurance, will be giving an exclusive presentation on the thinking and vision of the various experts contributing to the White Paper “Artificial intelligence and ethics in the insurance sector”.
Thinking holistically about the role of AI in promoting the common good
With a preface written by Axelle Lemaire, former Minister of State with responsibility for Digital Affairs and Innovation and now a partner at Roland Berger, this White Paper considers the ethical framework of AI, which is transforming all economic sectors, and in particular the insurance sector. Mrs Lemaire observes that it is “in the insurance field that we are today seeing the most advanced applications of algorithmic intelligence”. Not only do such applications make it possible to automate repetitive administrative tasks, thus enabling human capital to be redirected towards directly customer-focused activities; they also make it possible to automatically process huge amounts of data so as to better predict both existing and emerging risks, thus improving insurance cover and the personalisation of offerings – with all the ethical debates this entails. The White Paper, which considers these issues from a global, European and French perspective, is structured around three areas of focus: personal insurance; property and casualty insurance; and insurance professions and insured persons.
The paper identifies a number of areas for further discussion and makes recommendations in light of these new challenges based on different target groups:
- For beneficiaries, there is a need to secure commitments from insurers as regards transparency and specific information about the activities in which AI is used. Indeed, customer confidence in the use of digital technology largely depends on the transparency of communication. It is also appropriate to demand that the time freed up through the use of AI be reinvested in activities that add significant value to insured persons, including activities that require human interaction, or in offering new services that meet customers’ needs.
- For insurers, there is a need to better cooperate with new players like InsurTech firms, put in place a charter of ethics and an ethics committee, and work together to develop algorithms that take into account the European regulatory framework. It appears vital that insurance institutions work together at the European level to ensure that algorithms are not produced outside Europe and imposed on France under conditions dictated by unregulated global digital giants.
- For public stakeholders, it would be desirable to better govern the ethics of AI and algorithms, introduce a specific label certifying that operators comply with this approach, more effectively pool thinking and foster cooperation between players, etc. In any event, governments will need to play a decisive role in ensuring that AI is responsible and ethical and that it serves users and, more broadly, the common good.
"The fruit of thinking from across the insurance and social protection industry, the White Paper on “Artificial intelligence and ethics in the insurance sector” explores opportunities for putting AI to work in the service of people", says Alexandre André, CEO of La Fabrique d'Assurance.
In 2020, La Fabrique d’Assurance will be focusing its efforts on the issue of “How to restore confidence in insurance?”.
* Those involved include: Yann Arnaud, Chairman of the Digital Committee of the FFA (Federation of French Insurers); Patrick Brothier, Vice-Chairman of the FNMF (National Federation of French Mutual Insurers); Alain Coheur, Chairman of the European Economic and Social Committee’s social economy group; Stéphane Dedeyan, CEO of the VYV group; Bernard Delas, Vice-Chairman of the ACPR (French Prudential Supervisory and Resolution Authority); Jean-Philippe Diguet, Insurance Director at the FNMF (National Federation of French Mutual Insurers); Norbert Girard, General Secretary of the OEMA (Observatory of Change in the Insurance Profession); Jean-Charles Grollemund, Chairman of the Innovation Committee at CTIP (Technical Centre for Provident Institutions); Axelle Lemaire, former Minister of State with responsibility for Digital Affairs and Innovation; Antoine Lissowski, CEO of CNP Assurances; Florence Lustman, Chair of the FFA (Federation of French Insurers); and Djamel Souami, Chairman of CTIP (Technical Centre for Provident Institutions).