Robots and the Future of Insurance Carriers and Related Activities
Overview:
The advent of cutting-edge robotics technologies is posing various opportunities and challenges to the insurance sector, particularly insurance carriers. With robots set to occupy significant mainstream positions in various sectors, insurance carriers have the responsibility to protect businesses from potential risks associated with such machines. This guide explores possibilities, novelty, and complexities that robots introduce to insurance carriers in light of significant statistics.
Introduction of Robots and Their Impact on Insurance Carriers
In the near future, robot usage will expand significantly. According to Accenture, up to 85% of insurance executives believe they will work collaboratively with robots within the next five years. This collaboration presupposes that robots will require insurance protection on an unprecedented scale previously reserved for human-worker dominated workplaces. Insurance carriers have to adopt new risk-evaluation metrics and create suitable coverage plans for clients that heavily use robots. These metrics will aid the curtailment of cyber risks, malfunctioning risks, and physical damages to goods and humans, all of which are tied to robotic operation in varying extents.
Complexity Associated with Providing Coverage
There are myriads of complexities associated with robot coverage that could present coverage obstacles for insurance carriers. Among these complexities is the fact that the majority of robots are designed to function in a non-static environment. According to Deloitte, about 60% of all field automation robots function in such an environment, making the task of ascertaining risk levels a complicated endeavor. Consequently, insurance carriers may find it challenging to accommodate risk and return considerations. The situation is compounded by, at times, an unclear distinction between the liability of manufacture and user, making matters such as accident liability hard to unravel.
Increasing demand for Robotic Insurance
With large-scale adoption of robots, there is a steadily growing demand for robot insurance. An international study found that 53% of businesses have identified the need for robot insurance, showing a significant untapped market for insurance carriers. The same study highlighted that one in five businesses are expected to include robots on their risk registers by 2025, necessitating prompt insurance intervention.
Key Takeaways:
- Robots have the potential to significantly affect insurance carriers due to their expanding mainstream usage.
- There are complexities associated with robot insurance coverage, including the dynamism of the robot function environment and the blurring of liability boundaries.
- Demand for robot insurance is on the rise, presenting an opportunity for insurance carriers to create comprehensive insurance policies catering to the needs of diverse clients.
At 3Laws Robotics, we aim to support the future of insurance carriers with our innovative software solutions designed to enhance safety and reliability for robotic systems.
Our primary focus at 3Laws is addressing the significant challenge of certification, a known pain point for robotics companies. Our software, 3Laws Supervisor, simplifies this process by offering robust safety features and system robustness evidence, potentially easing the certification path.
Built on Control Barrier Functions (CBFs), a technology developed at Caltech, 3Laws Supervisor claims to provide mathematically provable safety. Our technology finds numerous applications across industries:
- In warehouse automation, we supported an autonomous forklift customer to achieve a 40% efficiency gain, reflecting a 6-month payback period.
- In human-robot interaction, we enable safe and uninterrupted operation of robots near humans, answering the growing need for collaborative robotics solutions.
- In dynamic environments, our software's reactive collision avoidance capabilities enable robots to navigate effectively.
Additionally, 3Laws aims at enhancing operational efficiency by minimizing downtime. With real-time guardrails for autonomy stacks, robots can operate closer to their peak capabilities, maintaining safety.
Our software is notably flexible and is compatible with a wide range of platforms, including mobile robots, cars, drones, and manipulators, and widely used robotics middleware such as ROS and ROS2. 3Laws positions itself as a next-generation safety solution that goes beyond traditional e-stop methods. We offer a proactive approach to safety, unlocking the full potential of robotics with dynamic, predictive safety ready for safety certification for ISO 3691-4 and ISO 26262.