AI exposes insurers' data gaps

Carrier Management reported on June 3 that insurers are finding AI is exposing long-standing weaknesses in their data environments rather than solving them. The publication, citing Sollers Consulting’s CEO Voices Report 2026: *AI and the Human Impact*, said carriers are treating AI, automation and data-driven decision-making as strategic priorities, but are running into fragmented systems, siloed business units and inconsistent data formats. (insurancebusinessmag.com) FinTech Global reported the same day that insurers’ digital and AI spending is often not translating into better customer experience. The overlap between the two reports is straightforward: carriers have bought tools, but many still lack the connected, trusted data needed to use them consistently across underwriting, claims and service operations. (carriermanagement.com) ### Why are insurers talking about data again if they already invested in AI? Carrier Management said the problem is not model sophistication first, but the “underlying data environment.” The report described insurers as operating with disconnected workflows, legacy infrastructure, duplicate records and limited interoperability, all of which can reduce the effectiveness of automation and analytics. (carriermanagement.com) Sollers Consulting’s findings, as summarized by Carrier Management, said AI needs “trusted, connected, high-quality data ecosystems” to support real-time analytics and intelligent automation at scale. (fintech.global) In that framing, AI is surfacing defects that were already inside core insurance operations. ### How wide is the gap between insurers using AI well and everyone else? Insurance Business reported on May 6 that only 10% of property and casualty insurers have successfully scaled AI, citing Capgemini Research Institute’s *World Property & Casualty Insurance Report 2026*. The same report said 42% of insurers track no AI metrics at all, and 60% remain in exploration or proof-of-concept stages without a reliable way to judge what is working. (carriermanagement.com) Capgemini said its “intelligence trailblazers” achieved up to 21% higher revenue growth and about a 51% greater increase in share price over three years than peers. (carriermanagement.com) Kartik Ramakrishnan, CEO of Capgemini’s financial services strategic business unit, said insurers can move beyond pilots by “strengthening data foundations, clarifying ownership, and investing in skills and governance.” ### What is stopping carriers from getting returns from AI projects? Carrier Management said poor data quality can directly affect risk evaluation accuracy, pricing sophistication and operational confidence, especially in underwriting and pricing. (insurancebusinessmag.com) The publication also said insurers cannot deploy algorithms without understanding how decisions are made, how data is sourced and whether outputs remain compliant and defensible. A May 20 Carrier Management analysis by Brian Nordyke and Nick Kramer of SSA & Company said many carriers still have not changed decision rights, role definitions or accountability boundaries to accommodate AI. (insurancebusinessmag.com) They wrote that measurable returns remain elusive when AI is added as a bolt-on rather than tied to a redesigned operating model. ### What does that mean for healthcare and other regulated sectors? Healthcare and insurance share the same operational constraint: model performance depends on data quality, workflow design and governance. Carrier Management said insurance is a “highly regulated, risk-sensitive industry where explainability, auditability, and governance are essential,” a description that also fits healthcare administration, prior authorization and revenue cycle work. (carriermanagement.com) Capgemini’s findings point in the same direction. The firms that scale AI are more likely to invest in change management, explainable AI infrastructure and explicit ownership, according to Insurance Business’s summary of the report. (carriermanagement.com) For consultants, that makes data readiness, governance and decision rights earlier questions than model selection. ### What should readers watch next? June 2026 reporting from Carrier Management, FinTech Global and Insurance Business is now centering on the same measures: data quality, governance, ownership and proof of operational results. (carriermanagement.com) The next benchmark documents in circulation are Sollers Consulting’s *CEO Voices Report 2026* and Capgemini’s *World Property & Casualty Insurance Report 2026*, which the trade publications are continuing to cite as carriers assess where AI is working and where it is stalling. (insurancebusinessmag.com)