The Broker Who Doesn't Choose Gets Bought

On 9 February, Insurify launched the first insurance app inside ChatGPT. Consumers could compare car insurance directly, without an intermediary. Willis Towers Watson had its worst trading day since 2008. Broker stocks tumbled.

I was on the phone with a client that day who asked: "Should we be worried?" My answer was short. No. But not for the reason he expected.

The debate that followed was predictable. Will the broker become obsolete? Analysts called the sell-off excessive. Rightly so. But the panic focused on the wrong question.

Broker versus broker

Bank of America identified $15 billion in commissions on simple risks that are vulnerable to AI disintermediation. Real, but that mostly affects simple personal lines -- a market where margins have been shrinking for years.

Complex advisory work -- middle market, specialty, commercial portfolios -- is actually becoming more valuable. But only for brokers who operate faster and with better data than their competitors. That is where the real shift lies. Not between AI and the broker. Between brokers themselves.

The gap in numbers

Insurers and distributors that actively deploy AI achieve combined ratios six points lower than laggards. Their premium growth is three points higher (WTW, 2026).

But the figure that strikes me most: producers under 35 with AI tools generate portfolios that are on average $168,000 larger than their peers without (Risk & Insurance / Reagan Consulting, 2025). That is not marginal. That is a different business.

The forgotten mid-segment

84% of brokerages above $100M invest in generative AI. In the $25-100M segment: 60% (Risk & Insurance, 2025). Large brokers have the budgets and data teams. Small niche players are not the target for now.

But mid-sized brokerages -- the segment that wants to grow and is consolidating -- are stuck in no man's land. Too ambitious to ignore AI, too pragmatic for a multi-million investment. Yet they have the most to gain: growth without proportionally more FTEs, better retention, cross-sell opportunities that currently remain invisible.

Out of pilot purgatory

90% of insurers started an AI pilot in 2025. Only 7% scaled to production (BCG). Deloitte signals a sharp gap: 90% of leaders acknowledge that work needs to be redesigned around AI -- 25% are actually doing it.

The problem is not the technology. It is the approach. Those who treat AI as a standalone project -- a chatbot here, a pilot there -- stay stuck.

What distinguishes the brokers who do push through? They start with data, not with AI. Sounds dull. It is. But those who first clean up client and policy data get substantially more out of every model they apply. Without clean data, you buy expensive shelfware.

And they measure differently. Not on minutes saved or tasks automated, but on revenue growth, retention and customer lifetime value. The difference sounds subtle. In practice, it determines whether AI remains a cost centre or becomes a growth engine.

Consolidation accelerates the urgency

The European insurance M&A market reached 789 transactions in 2025 (+14%). DACH grew 35%, Benelux 29% (FTI Consulting). PE players drove more than 60% of all deals and pay a premium for "data-ready" brokerages -- lower integration costs, higher growth potential.

AI adoption does not just make you more competitive. It makes you more resilient against consolidation pressure. Or more effective when you acquire.

The choice

2026 is not the year to explore AI. That should have been 2024.

This is the year to choose. Not between AI or no AI -- that debate is over. But between AI as a standalone project or as the foundation of how you operate. The gap between brokers who choose and brokers who wait grows every month. And that gap can no longer be closed with a catch-up effort next year.

That client who called me on 9 February? He chose. Not out of panic, but because he saw the difference between reacting and directing. The question is not whether AI will change your sector. The question is whether you choose -- or get chosen for.

Sources

Willis Towers Watson -- Insurers Using Advanced Analytics and AI Report Strong Returns, March 2026
Bank of America Global Research -- $15 Billion at Risk from AI in Insurance, March 2026
BCG -- Insurance Leads in AI Adoption, Now Time to Scale, 2025
Deloitte -- 2026 Global Insurance Outlook, 2026
Risk & Insurance -- Leading Insurance Brokerages Embrace AI Revolution, 2025
FTI Consulting -- European Insurance M&A Barometer, 2025
McKinsey -- AI in Insurance: Understanding the Implications for Investors, 2026
Insurance Journal -- Insurify Launches Industry-First ChatGPT Insurance App, February 2026