FUTR of Insurance 2026

Luke Hannan, Event Chair & Moderator

• The moments that matter most to customers - what dispute trends reveal about expectations, communication and claims journeys.

• Resolving issues earlier - the practical changes that reduce escalation and build long-term trust.

• Using insights to drive better decisions - how complaints data can inform product design, service models and day-to-day operations. 

  Emma Curtis - Lead Ombudsman - Insurance, Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA)

• A futuristic vision for disaster protection in a world of climate uncertainty, where even uninsurable property has protection

• How advancement in AI technology can enable this vision

• How the economics of risk mitigation might impact the insurance business model.

  Ed de Salis - Insurance Industry Lead ANZ, AWS

As data and AI become embedded across underwriting, claims, and customer engagement, insurers must balance innovation with accountability. This session explores responsible data use in practice, how privacy is built in from the outset, and how to create clearer, more confident customer experiences.

Jessica Amos - Head of Privacy AUSPAC, QBE Insurance

• Lessons from HBF’s transformation: pivoting strategy and modernising platforms for agility and growth 

• Embedding AI responsibly for claims automation, productivity, and member experience - balancing innovation with trust 

• Building a culture and operating model that accelerates adoption while delivering measurable business outcomes 

  Sanjeev Gupta, Chief Information & Transformation Officer, HBF Health

• Achieving meaningful operational improvement through AI-enabled processes - reducing manual touchpoints, rework and friction

• Building trust through transparent AI guardrails - ensuring explainability, fairness and privacy in every decision

• Demonstrating real adoption - frontline uptake, platform reliability and KPIs that move the needle

Panellists:

• Shiva Storer - Chief Strategy Officer, Allianz Australia

• Willem Paling - Executive Manager, Analytics & AI, IAG

• Saleshni Sharma - Chief Information Security Officer Asia Pacific, W. R. Berkley Corporation

• Siamak Tafavogh - Head of Performance, Planning & AI, CBHS Health Fund

• Vinodh Stanley Stephen - Head of Insurance Consulting, Cognizant

• LLMs are becoming commoditised, but value is not: where insurers can still differentiate is in speed, execution, and capability building, not access to models.

• Architecting agentic systems that connect to the enterprise: linking AI agents to business processes, data, controls and governance so they operate with context and trust.

• From pilots to scale through orchestration: using automation and orchestration platforms (including Enterprise MCP) to deploy agentic use cases enterprise-wide and build skills faster than the market.

  Charlie Hutchinson - Regional Vice President, Workato

• Embedding security and technology risk into digital health, data and AI initiatives from design stage through to production

• Managing third party, ecosystem and integration risk across healthcare, platform and service partners

• Maintaining strong resilience and regulatory confidence while enabling faster digital and data led service delivery

  Harsh Busa - Chief Information Security Officer, Avant Mutal

We’ll take a real-time snapshot of the room across key themes, with live results shared to ground the conversations ahead.

How the life insurance sector is responding to rising expectations around transparency, accountability, and customer outcomes. Covering advice reform, the Life Code review, and pressures such as mental health and affordability, this session explores how policy and industry are working together to deliver meaningful change.

Luke Hyde - General Manager, Policy, Council of Australian Life Insurers (CALI)

• How insurers combine behavioural signals and AI-driven decisioning to personalise experiences in real time across key journeys

• Where AI can accelerate content creation, next-best-action, and experimentation, and where human expertise remains critical

• How leading organisations operationalise AI across teams and channels to improve speed-to-market, reduce friction, and drive measurable outcomes

Michael Wingert, Director Solution Engineering, APAC and Japan, Sitecore

• Designing customer journeys that feel protected and effortless - reducing friction while improving clarity and speed

• Building reassurance into the experience - through transparent communication, clear expectations and meaningful safeguards

• Showing the impact - measuring trust, demonstrating uplift and creating accountability across digital and service touchpoints

Panellists:

• Annmaree J Bell - Chief Customer Officer, Zurich Financial Services Australia 

• Kanika Puri - Chief Operating Officer, Fastcover

• Laura Cohalan - Head of Strategy, PetSure

• Mairead Bourello - Industry Specialist, Adyen

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Australia’s payments infrastructure is undergoing significant change, with BECS, supporting $17.4T annually, being decommissioned. What this means for your organisation and how to plan your transition will be critical.

• Understand the real impact of real-time payments on premiums, claims, and direct debits. Identify where legacy infrastructure may be driving cost and complexity in your operations.

• See how leading insurers are responding early. Learn how to turn a compliance requirement into improved cash flow, lower costs, and stronger competitive positioning.

David Greene - Chief Commercial Officer, Monoova

• Designing the business, platform and distribution together rather than modernising in layers.

• Using data and AI from day one to support underwriting, service and growth decisions.

• What established insurers underestimate about moving to a truly low-friction model

  Miksu Vaittinen - Executive General Manager, Freely

• The key trends shaping insurance across data, AI, and customer expectations

• Where organisations are making real progress, and where gaps remain

• What leaders should prioritise to turn strategy into measurable outcomes

  Craig Baty - Principal, DataDriven

Luke Hannan, Event Chair & Moderator

Join us for end-of-day drinks, networking and a few cheers to close the day.