Episode Detail

A comment at a claims conference sparked this solo episode of The Future of Insurance: at events across the Industry, it can feel like everything is AI now. Bryan Falchuk takes that reaction seriously. The numbers rarely support it, but the discomfort behind it is real, especially for professionals in restoration, contracting, and other hands-on parts of Claims who are watching change swirl around their work.

Bryan argues that discomfort is a signal worth following. Drawing on a talk by Jessica Eldridge, SVP & Practice Director of Cyber at J.S. Held, on the overlap between cyber and property risk, he shows how AI-driven data centers are creating new physical exposures, and how AI's growing role in supply chain management touches even the most traditional trades. Digging in may reveal an opportunity, or lead to the informed conclusion that a trend doesn't affect you yet. Either way, you come out better prepared. When change feels uncomfortable, that's the moment to get curious.

Show Notes:

When It Feels Like Everything Is AI:

• An attendee at the Virginia State Claims Association conference told Bryan that PLRB events feel like they're all AI now.

• In practice, AI and tech account for under 30% of vendors and sessions at PLRB events, including its innovation-focused summit.

• The percentage matters less than the perception. For people in traditional, physical parts of Claims, the change feels like it's everywhere, and that's uncomfortable.

Discomfort as a Signal:

• Bryan suggests treating discomfort as a sign of change happening around your work, even when it isn't directly in your work.

• Worries about AI and jobs are valid, and there are real arguments on both sides, which is exactly why understanding the dynamics matters.

• Bryan has explored this tension in his writing on what AI could mean for the agent and broker channel.

Where Cyber Meets Property:

• Jessica Eldridge, SVP & Practice Director of Cyber at J.S. Held, spoke at the same event on the interplay between cyber insurance and property.

• Data centers carry major property exposure during construction and once built, and they are attractive cyber targets.

• Bryan points to a recent case in France where refrigeration settings in grocery stores were altered, causing spoilage and, in some cases, fire. Data center cooling faces the same kind of risk.

• For restoration and contractor firms working in commercial spaces, understanding these risks could open new opportunities or inform a decision to stay out.

Even Traditional Work Runs on a Supply Chain:

• Construction, auto repair, and restoration all depend on materials and tools moving through supply chains.

• COVID showed how disruption can stop work entirely, and tariffs and geopolitical conflict keep the pressure on.

• AI is increasingly used to route goods around those constraints, so it reaches physical trades whether they engage with it or not.

Get Curious: Digging in may lead you to conclude that a trend doesn't affect you, but you'll have reached that conclusion informed and you'll be ready if it changes.

This episode is brought to you by The Future of Insurance book series (future-of-insurance.com) from Bryan Falchuk.

Follow the podcast at future-of-insurance.com/podcast for more details and other episodes.

Music courtesy of Hyperbeat Music, available to stream or download on Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music and more.