Manulife Earns Celent Model Insurer Recognition for AI Leadership in Underwriting
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MAUDE highlights how Manulife is scaling AI to streamline underwriting and deliver faster, more seamless outcomes
TORONTO - Manulife has received the Celent Model Insurer Award for its use of data, analytics, and AI in its proprietary AI underwriting engine, MAUDE (Manulife Automated Underwriting Decision Engine).
The annual Model Insurer Awards by Celent, a global research and advisory firm for the financial services industry,
Celent’s annual Model Insurer Awards recognize insurance carriers for outstanding technology initiatives that demonstrate clear business impact, innovation, and technology or implementation excellence.
MAUDE won in the Data, Analytics, and AI category for its innovative AI-driven machine learning capabilities, which enable automated approvals for straightforward individual life insurance applications while routing more complex cases to underwriters, streamlining the decision-making process.
“The Model Insurer Awards recognize how insurers are leveraging technology to fundamentally transform the insurance experience,” says Keith Raymond, Principal Analyst at Celent. “The Manulife Automated Underwriting Decision Engine is a standout example – demonstrating how best in class innovation can drive meaningful business impact and set a new standard for the industry.”
Originally introduced in 2018 as the Artificial Intelligence Decision Algorithm (AIDA), the first AI tool in Canada to make automatic underwriting decisions, MAUDE has evolved into a more sophisticated engine that delivers faster, more efficient approvals. As of today, MAUDE processes more than half of eligible individual life insurance applications automatically, delivering decisions in as little as two minutes for qualified applicants.
“Manulife is using data, analytics, and AI to make the insurance experience simpler, faster, and more seamless,” said Karen Cutler, Chief Underwriter, Manulife Canada. “Our long-standing leadership in this space reflects Manulife’s commitment to continuous innovation in insurance, helping improve decision-making and enabling us to better serve our customers.”
This recognition underscores Manulife’s continued leadership as an AI-powered organization – leveraging advanced technologies aimed at transforming decision making and delivering faster, more seamless experiences for its clients and advisors.
“Celent’s recognition provides strong independent validation of Manulife’s leadership in applying data, analytics, and AI at scale,” said Jamie Campbell, Head of AI, Manulife Canada. “It reflects how we are embedding AI across our business, bringing capabilities like our automated underwriting engine to life to accelerate decisions and deliver tangible impact for customers and advisors.”
Manulife has been actively investing in and scaling AI capabilities since 2016. In the past three years, the firm has significantly increased the value enabled through advanced analytics and AI by expanding its AI solutions portfolio and increasing efficiency through data and AI platform investments, all driven by the company’s responsible AI framework.
To learn more about Manulife’s AI progress, visit AI @ Manulife.
Caution regarding forward-looking statements
This document contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbour" provisions of Canadian provincial securities laws and the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 with respect to Manulife’s use of its digital capabilities and the expected benefits it expects to realize from AI. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, such statements involve risks and uncertainties, and undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. Certain material factors or assumptions are applied in making forward-looking statements, and actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations include but are not limited to general business and economic conditions; changes in laws and regulations with respect to the use of AI-enabled tools; our ability to execute our digital plans and to deploy future digital use cases; our ability to adapt products and services to the changing market; our ability to attract and retain key employees and our ability to protect our intellectual property and exposure to claims of infringement from others. Additional information about material risk factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations may be found in our most recent annual and interim reports and elsewhere in our filings with Canadian and U.S. securities regulators.
The forward-looking statements in this document are, unless otherwise indicated, stated as of the date hereof. We do not undertake to update any forward-looking statements, except as required by law.
About Manulife
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping our customers make their decisions easier and lives better. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we operate as Manulife across Canada, Asia, and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States, providing financial advice and insurance for individuals, groups and businesses. Through Manulife Wealth & Asset Management, we offer global investment, financial advice, and retirement plan services to individuals, institutions, and retirement plan members worldwide. At the end of 2024, we had more than 37,000 employees, over 109,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving over 36 million customers. We trade as ‘MFC’ on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges, and under ‘945’ in Hong Kong.
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