Latest Startups Headlines
All the headlines from our Startups Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Insurtech Pilots and Pivots: Learning by Doing and Undoing
Oct 15 2018 // “If you can’t admit a failure, you’re not an entrepreneur. You are not a good business person. There’s nothing brilliant about what you are doing.” –Mark Cuban Insurtechs are great for...
Berlin Insurtech Startup Simplesurance Sets Sights on U.S. for Future Expansion
Oct 12 2018 // Simplesurance founder and CEO Robin von Hein sat down last year with Insurance Journal’s sister publication, Carrier Management, to discuss the company’s strategy. Based on the edge of Berlin’s trendy...
UK Self-Driving Startup Oxbotica Appoints Former Uber Executive to Board
Oct 10 2018 // Oxbotica, a U.K. startup whose self-driving vehicle software will help guide the European Space Agency’s Mars rover, has appointed former Uber executive Fraser Robinson to its board. Robinson served as the...
It’s Not Easy to Teach Robot Drivers to Think Like Humans
Oct 9 2018 // Robot cars make for annoying drivers. Relative to human motorists, the driverless vehicles now undergoing testing on public roads are overly cautious, maddeningly slow, and prone to abrupt halts or bizarre paralysis caused...
Assurant Invests in Connected Car Services Startup
Sep 20 2018 // Niche market specialty insurer Assurant has invested in a technology startup focused on connected car services. The New York-based company declined to disclose the level of investment in Mojio, a technology platform and...
GC Genesis, Guy Carpenter’s Insurer-Insurtech Matchmaker, Aims to Prevent Bad Relationships
Sep 11 2018 // Insurtech is often touted as the cure that will solve the insurance industry’s inefficient and antiquated processes – from distribution, to underwriting, to claims. While many insurers want to investigate the...
Comcast Executive Joins Amazon, Berkshire, JPMorgan Health Startup as COO
Sep 7 2018 // The newly formed healthcare venture of Amazon.com Inc, Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. on Tuesday hired Jack Stoddard as chief operating officer. Stoddard was previously general manager for digital...
Zurich Insurance Begins Competition to Find Cutting-Edge InsurTech Startups
Aug 31 2018 // Zurich Insurance Group believes a competition will help it find cutting-edge startups and entrepreneurs with whom to collaborate in the insurtech space. The Swiss insurer launched what it is calling the Zurich Innovation...
Startup’s Newest Employee Benefit, Stem Cell Storage, Could Last Forever
Aug 28 2018 // As MyCrypto mulled what benefits to offer employees, the new blockchain startup asked them what they wanted. “Surprisingly, we found that the traditional health benefits and 401(k) benefits—they had no interest in...
Startup Root Raises $100 Million, Prepares to Go National
Aug 23 2018 // Root Insurance raised a $100 million financing round in a bid to fuel market expansion and hiring as the auto insurance startup with its telematics-based platform goes national. Tiger Global Management led the Series D...
Embroker Launches Direct-to-Customer Online D&O Policy for Startups
Aug 8 2018 // Embroker, a digital commercial insurance brokerage, has launched a fully digital directors and officers (D&O) insurance policy, specifically designed for venture capital (VC) backed tech startups. The D&O policy is...
Mortgage Startup Blend Labs Enters Homeowners Market With MetLife
Aug 6 2018 // Blend Labs Inc., a startup that first became known by helping big banks make it easier for homebuyers to get a mortgage online, is branching out into a new industry: insurance. The San Francisco-based company is launching...
Nationwide Invests in Online Business Financing Startup BlueVine
Jul 31 2018 // Nationwide said it is making a new venture-capital investment in BlueVine, a provider of online working capital financing for small- and medium-sized businesses. The BlueVine announcement is part of Nationwide’s...
Canadian Insurer Backs Autonomous Car Startup in Florida Retirement Community
Jul 26 2018 // There’s a village in Florida where self-driving cars rule the road, and a Canadian insurance firm wants to come along for the ride. Toronto-based Intact Financial Corp. is investing $3 million in startup Voyage as...
Interest in Crypto Insurance Grows, Despite High Premiums, Broad Exclusions
Jul 23 2018 // In the staid and buttoned-up world of insurance underwriting, few want to talk about it. You won’t find many ads promoting it or details on company websites offering it. But according to industry insiders,...
Reinsurers, Insurtech Startups Increasingly Seek Mutually Beneficial Partnerships
Jul 18 2018 // Reinsurance companies increasingly are funding insurtech startups in order to structure more innovative products and improve their business efficiencies, but how much impact on the industry will these investments...
Canada’s Fineqia International Takes Stake in Blockchain Startup Black Insurance
Jul 11 2018 // Fineqia International Inc., a Vancouver-based technology company, announced it is taking an equity allocation in Black Insurance, a blockchain insurance startup. Terms of the investment were not disclosed, but Fineqia said...
Planck Re, a Commercial Insurance Data Platform Startup, Raises $12M
Jul 6 2018 // Planck Re, a commercial insurance data platform startup, nailed down $12 million for its first formal financing. Arbor Ventures led the round, which also included Viola FinTech and Eight Roads. Plans call for the company...
Amazon to Buy Online Pharmacy Startup PillPack as Entry Into Health Care
Jun 28 2018 // Amazon.com Inc. agreed to buy the online pharmacy startup PillPack, jumping into the health care business with a deal that will give the retail giant an immediate nationwide drug network. The move represents a formidable...
Auto Supplier Bosch Teams with Startup Mojio to Connect Vehicles to Digital Services
Jun 28 2018 // German auto supplier Robert Bosch GmbH is teaming with Canadian startup Mojio to get more vehicles connected wirelessly to a wide range of digital services, from insurance companies to emergency responders, the companies...
