Howden Re to develop AI tools to transform reinsurance pricing with UCL

Howden Re and the UCL School of Management, the business school of University College London (UCL), have secured £200,000 in government funding as part of a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP). Co-funded by Innovate UK and Howden Re, the KTP will bring together academic research and practical industry application to develop AI-powered tools aimed at transforming reinsurance pricing and accumulation methods.

The partnership marks the first of its kind for both organisations and the award recognises projects that foster academic–industry collaboration to drive measurable impact in high-value sectors. Howden Re is one of just four organisations anticipated to secure a KTP this year, selected from a pool of around 100 applicants.

In direct response to a long-standing data transparency issue that has led to significant volatility in underwriting performance, the 18-month project will focus on the development of a cutting-edge pricing and accumulation tool, designed to standardise and automate key data ingestion workflows using Large Language Models (LLMs), Machine Learning (ML), and Cloud technologies.

Benchmarking capabilities will also be enhanced, supporting faster and more accurate decision-making.

This initiative underscores Howden Re’s ongoing commitment to developing innovative technology-led solutions that improve data quality, reduce ambiguity, and deliver more transparent outcomes in risk transfer for the benefit of the entire sector. 

“We're thrilled to be collaborating with UCL on this AI product, a first of its kind in the reinsurance space,” said Dr. Melodie Vanderpuye, Project Supervisor, Howden Re.  “As risks become ever more complex and interconnected, the role of re/insurance in making sense of uncertainty, and putting a price on it, has never been more vital. With this investment, Howden Re reinforces our commitment to innovation, increasing efficiency and solving data transparency problems in a scalable way.”

Dr. Deyu Ming, Project Academic Supervisor, UCL School of Management, said: “This KTP not only advances the frontier of applied AI research, but also shows how academic–industry partnerships can co-create impactful solutions to complex and real-world data challenges in the reinsurance space.”

“This partnership with Howden Re is a great example of how we can apply cutting-edge research to real-world challenges,” added Professor Steve Yoo, Academic Lead, UCL School of Management. “We’re excited to see UCL’s AI expertise make a tangible impact in the (re)insurance industry.”

The project will embed a full-time KTP Associate at Howden Re’s London office to lead the technical development and deployment of advanced AI workflows. Applications for the role are open until 2 July 2025, offering a unique opportunity to work at the intersection of academic research and industry application. For more information and to apply, visit here.