Insurance giant Aviva has partnered with Silicon Valley-based startup accelerator Plug and Play on the latter's insurance-focused startup accelerator.
One of the initial goals of the programme is to bring innovations in digital insurance.
Aviva will work with Plug and Play to mentor digital start-ups and support them to turn ideas into products or services.
According to Aviva Chief Information Officer Monique Shivanandan, the Plug and Play partnership is important in moving forward its culture and innovation rapidly.
InsurTech, which will be launched next month, hopes to garner up to 1000 applications from start-ups who have the potential of disrupting the insurance agency.
Plug and Play founder & CEO Saeed Amidi said: “We look forward to pursuing innovative ideas in the UK and Europe, as well as building a bridge to Silicon Valley.”
After selecting the most promising ideas, about 40-50 start-ups will be given the opportunity to work out of the Silicon Valley tech center of Plug and Play. In addition, the start-ups will be guided through in developing their ideas by InsurTech team.
Aviva says that this partnership is in line with its ‘digital first strategy’ aimed at making its interface simple and easy for customers in their enquiries and transactions.
Aviva chief digital officer Andrew Brem said: “This partnership forms another exciting strand of our digital innovation strategy as well as providing opportunities for our people to work with leading entrepreneurs to explore new digital innovations and thinking.”
Image: Aviva announces partnership with Plug and Play. Photo Courtesy of Aviva plc.