A selfie could become the new way to obtain life insurance

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This was published 6 years ago

A selfie could become the new way to obtain life insurance

By John Collett
Updated

You'd think life insurance would be almost immune from disruption by technology, but one of the oldest and most data-intensive industries is likely to undergo huge transformation.

If technology being developed in the United States matches the hype, those looking to buy life insurance will be able to have their applications assessed and approved in minutes.

Artificial intelligence is being trained to estimate how long someone will live and their health status – all from a selfie taken by applicant.

North Carolina technology firm Lapetus Life Event Solutions is a leader in the field. With its Chronos technology, the life-insurance applicant takes a selfie and scans their driver's licence photo against which the selfie is compared.

The City of Melbourne has not issued any infringements for smoking outside the six public hospitals in its jurisdiction since the ban begun.

The City of Melbourne has not issued any infringements for smoking outside the six public hospitals in its jurisdiction since the ban begun.Credit: Tamara Voninski

The software can tell, for example, if the applicant is a smoker by the lines on their face, given their age.

Karl Ricanek jnr, co-founder and chief data scientist at Lapetus Solutions, in a story carried in USA Today, says there's a unique story for every face.

Telling an insurer you are a non-smoker to keep the premium low and getting away with it may be a thing of the past as the software would detect the tell-tail signs, such as crow's feet around the eyes.

"Smoking is going to be written on your face," Ricanek says. "Even if you stopped smoking, once it's written, it's there."

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Facial recognition technology has also been used in retail to monitor who was looking at advertising billboards in New York's Times Square and in Chicago, as well as monitoring the ages and genders of those entering retail stores.

Facial recognition technology has also been used in retail to monitor who was looking at advertising billboards in New York's Times Square and in Chicago, as well as monitoring the ages and genders of those entering retail stores.

The software also estimates their body mass index and how quickly a person is ageing biologically, which can be quite different to their chronological age.

Ricanek reckons Chronos would enable a customer to buy life insurance online in as little as 10 minutes without the need for a medical examination.

Advances in life and computing sciences and harnessing the power of cloud computing have facial technology developers, such as Lapetus, claiming face-reading software provides much more accurate lifespan estimates than traditional methods.

Some US insurers are conducting trials with the software, but would have to obtain regulatory approval to use it in the underwriting process.

Smoking is going to be written on your face. Even if you stopped smoking, once it's written, it's there.

Karl Ricanek jnr

Some of the tech companies aim to work with insurers but others want to grab a slice of the insurance market for themselves.

An article in the Financial Times says the biggest disruption of all could be if the technology and the results were made available to individuals.

The insurance industry could be undermined by the tech companies giving people the tools to decide if insurance is necessary. That could lead to those at higher risk of living shorter lives taking out insurance, driving premiums higher.

That would be even more so if the technology was able to incorporate the results of genetic testing. Lapetus is also exploring how facial analytics may identify early signs of diseases such as diabetes, heart disease or dementia.

The technology could even include searches of social media profiles to help predict lifestyle habits and risks – activities that would all require permission of the applicant.

Follow John Collett on Twitter.

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