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AI Alone Wont Close Indias Insurance Gap, NITI Aayog Says
When Sanjeet Singh stepped onto the stage at the Global FinTech Fest in 2026, he made a clear point: AI is a tool, not a panacea for India’s insurance gap. The programme director of NITI Aayog explained that the government’s goal is to lift insurance penetration from roughly 3.7 % to 4.7 % as part of a broader “insurance for all” agenda.
Singh identified the country’s “missing middle” as the biggest hurdle. These are households that sit between government‑backed schemes and the private sector’s usual clientele. NITI Aayog has already begun talks with insurers to craft a joint strategy that targets this segment, urging the private sector to thrive while also contributing to national development goals.
He cautioned that expanding AI use could deepen exclusion if people lack reliable internet or digital skills. The initiative also faces a shortage of AI professionals capable of deploying the technology within insurance operations.
Sarbvir Singh of PB Fintech Joint Group weighed in on how progress should be measured. He argued that the common metric of premiums as a percentage of GDP hides whether households have adequate protection. Instead, tracking sum assured per person for life insurance and per family for health insurance would give a clearer picture. He noted that the average life cover in India is about ₹4 lakh per policy, while the average sum assured among Policybazaar customers is roughly ₹81 lakh. Private insurers alone cannot cover the lowest‑income households without government support.
SBI General Insurance’s CEO Naveen Chandra Jha highlighted the need for scale. The company handled about 2.39 crore policies last year and plans to expand coverage further. He warned that AI will increase reliance on customer data for underwriting and personalization, raising trust concerns. Surveys show that over 80 % of customers worry about data protection, yet about two‑thirds are willing to share data for personalized benefits. Jha stressed that insurers should separate core underwriting data from optional lifestyle data and operate under a consent‑based framework.
Amit Dave, MD and CEO (Designate) of Prudential Health India, said technology will be embedded throughout the insurance value chain—from onboarding and underwriting to claims settlement. He noted that the pandemic has raised health‑insurance awareness, but adequate coverage and risk literacy remain gaps. Dave called for broader consumer education so that people understand the value of insurance before a shock occurs.
Closing India’s insurance gap will require more than AI integration. Scale must be matched with adequate coverage, consumer trust, and risk awareness. The government and private insurers must clearly define their roles in reaching the uninsured population. Key unresolved issues include the shortage of AI talent, data‑privacy safeguards, and the ability of private players to serve the lowest‑income segments.
Singh identified the country’s “missing middle” as the biggest hurdle. These are households that sit between government‑backed schemes and the private sector’s usual clientele. NITI Aayog has already begun talks with insurers to craft a joint strategy that targets this segment, urging the private sector to thrive while also contributing to national development goals.
He cautioned that expanding AI use could deepen exclusion if people lack reliable internet or digital skills. The initiative also faces a shortage of AI professionals capable of deploying the technology within insurance operations.
Sarbvir Singh of PB Fintech Joint Group weighed in on how progress should be measured. He argued that the common metric of premiums as a percentage of GDP hides whether households have adequate protection. Instead, tracking sum assured per person for life insurance and per family for health insurance would give a clearer picture. He noted that the average life cover in India is about ₹4 lakh per policy, while the average sum assured among Policybazaar customers is roughly ₹81 lakh. Private insurers alone cannot cover the lowest‑income households without government support.
SBI General Insurance’s CEO Naveen Chandra Jha highlighted the need for scale. The company handled about 2.39 crore policies last year and plans to expand coverage further. He warned that AI will increase reliance on customer data for underwriting and personalization, raising trust concerns. Surveys show that over 80 % of customers worry about data protection, yet about two‑thirds are willing to share data for personalized benefits. Jha stressed that insurers should separate core underwriting data from optional lifestyle data and operate under a consent‑based framework.
Amit Dave, MD and CEO (Designate) of Prudential Health India, said technology will be embedded throughout the insurance value chain—from onboarding and underwriting to claims settlement. He noted that the pandemic has raised health‑insurance awareness, but adequate coverage and risk literacy remain gaps. Dave called for broader consumer education so that people understand the value of insurance before a shock occurs.
Closing India’s insurance gap will require more than AI integration. Scale must be matched with adequate coverage, consumer trust, and risk awareness. The government and private insurers must clearly define their roles in reaching the uninsured population. Key unresolved issues include the shortage of AI talent, data‑privacy safeguards, and the ability of private players to serve the lowest‑income segments.
