AI robots help teach insurance ABCs, report says

Artificial intelligence robots are becoming an important force in raising public awareness of insurance and helping people interpret protection plans, a new industry report said.

ZhongAn ANswer, a robot developed by the ZhongAn Online P&C Insurance Co Ltd, has been consulted for nearly 9,500 hours and help clients understand their products for around 2,700 hours since it started work last July.

One user asked 14 questions in a row, ZhongAn said.

Through voiceprint analysis, the robot calculated that 70 percent of the users were born in the 1980s and 1990s, with the oldest customer being 77 years old who was interested in the age range a health insurance product covered.

Medical insurance was the most frequently asked about, and users were concerned about issues like exact coverage, underwriting, acceptance policies and renewals.

In terms of underwriting, people made plenty of consultations on whether they could buy an insurance plan with a pre-existing condition such as high blood pressure.

ZhongAn Online said with the help of the robot, it has established an insurance knowledge map and set up the industry's first insurance intention identification model based on processing more than a million questions.

All players in the insurance sector, both old and new, are going digital and offering more intelligent services, as traditional marketing like telemarketing and face-to-face promotions no longer meet customer expectations.

Chinese insurance giant CPIC unveiled a robot-adviser called Alpha in September 2017. Ant Financial’s Alipay also has similar online consultancy service.