The rapid expansion of large-scale AI data centres stands to introduce new accumulation risks — and opportunities for insurers, said Andrea Scascighini, Chief Underwriting Officer, Casualty for Property & Casualty Reinsurance for Swiss Re.
“Sites are becoming larger, more complex and more independent,” Scascighini said during his opening remarks at the Singapore International Reinsurance Conference on Wednesday (Nov 5). “And when you look at these projects, they have values that can exceed 20 million, and once you put the computers in there, they might even triple that amount.”
(Re)insurers need to consider how to model and price the fire, business interruption and associated risks when they underwrite and consider the accumulated risks and opportunities that data centres present. “We need to start reflecting on how we will model them, how we will price them, how we will manage these AI-related risks,” Scascighini said.
To do so, insurers will have to start by collecting the right information and ensure they know what’s driving emerging risks in these data centers so they can capture them well. “It’s going to be a journey, but there is a good business opportunity,” Scascighini said.
AI is also changing liability trends, Scascighini warned. A 2025 SONAR report by Swiss Re found that the number of AI-related incidents increased by more than 60% between 2023 and 2024, with a third of these incidents occurring due to system failure, driving demand for first- and third-party liability covers.
“We are seeing new forms of liability, from fairness and bias and discrimination or malicious use of AI or unintended outcomes, when the system does not perform as expected,” Scascighini said.
Transforming learning
As AI transforms how (re)insurers and underwriters work, automating the manual, tedious work, identifying common themes, exclusions or processes out of market norms, it will enhance (re)insurers’ ability to “look ahead”, Scascighini said.
Real-time risk assessments with AI systems that can monitor what’s happening with world markets, with various industries and track changes in regulation and exposure, will allow insurers to understand risk over time much better. With underwriters focused on higher value activities like providing their expertise and experience, building client relationships and being strategic, insurers can focus more on the future. “We can really become proactive, and not only reactive to losses,” Scascighini said.
But technology alone will not drive success, and (re)insurers will need to have a good foundation in data, governance, and safeguards in order for AI solutions to transform the value chain, Scascighini added. “AI is not just for the sake of innovation, it’s about driving business.”
Beyond clean, structured data and good governance frameworks, (re)insurers will need to keep the humans in the loop, to maintain trust.
“As underwriters, at the end of the day, we will continue to own our decisions and be accountable for them, and that’s an important element that we should not forget,” said Scascighini. “At the end of the day, AI will transform the way we work, but it won’t replace the human core.”
AI is a chance to reimagine the way talent grows in the industry. “The future belongs to domain experts we keep with AI, professionally combined with increased knowledge and the judgement with technology to drive better decisions,” Scascighini said.
“Imagine all our collective expertise captured in a system, allowing every underwriter to learn through the best in real-time and apply those insights from the most complex cases that we work on,” Scascighini added. “As an underwriter, this is really what I’m looking for.”
