The insurance industry continues to be a hotbed of patent innovation. Activity is driven by digitalization, personalization, and growing importance of technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things, and cybersecurity in insurance documentation and data analytics, predictive risk assessment, fraud detection, and smart policy management. In the last three years alone, there have been over 9,000 patents filed and granted in the insurance industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Blockchain in insurance: claims settlement blockchainsBuy the report here.

According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which uses over 75,000 patents to analyze innovation intensity for the insurance industry, there are 25+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.

Claims settlement blockchains is a key innovation area in blockchain

Claims settlement blockchains refer to the use of blockchain technology in the process of settling insurance claims. It involves utilizing a distributed ledger system to store and verify claim-related information, improving efficiency, transparency, and security in the claims settlement process. The distributed ledger technology allows for simultaneous access, validation, and record updating of digital data across multiple nodes on a computer network in a tamper-proof and transparent manner. It helps in automating claims settlements without the need for a central authority.

GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 340+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established insurance companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of claims settlement blockchains.

Key players in claims settlement blockchains – a disruptive innovation in the insurance industry

‘Application diversity’ measures the number of applications identified for each patent. It broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.   

‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of countries each patent is registered in. It reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.  

Patent volumes related to claims settlement blockchains

Company Total patents (2010 - 2022) Premium intelligence on the world's largest companies
State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance 134 Unlock Company Profile
Cox Enterprises 94 Unlock Company Profile
Alibaba Group 60 Unlock Company Profile
Ping An Insurance (Group) 52 Unlock Company Profile
The Toronto-Dominion Bank 48 Unlock Company Profile
Advanced New Technologies 42 Unlock Company Profile
Ant Group 31 Unlock Company Profile
Apogee Technology 31 Unlock Company Profile
Flex 24 Unlock Company Profile
eBay 23 Unlock Company Profile
Leeo 21 Unlock Company Profile
Taikang Insurance Group 21 Unlock Company Profile
Tencent 18 Unlock Company Profile
Security First 17 Unlock Company Profile
Alphabet 17 Unlock Company Profile
KBC Group 17 Unlock Company Profile
Catch Media 16 Unlock Company Profile
China Investment 16 Unlock Company Profile
International Business Machines 14 Unlock Company Profile
Staton Techiya 9 Unlock Company Profile
Palantir Technologies 9 Unlock Company Profile
Pioneer 8 Unlock Company Profile
Taikang Pension Insurance 8 Unlock Company Profile
Rpx 7 Unlock Company Profile
NEC 7 Unlock Company Profile
Swiss Re Asia Pacific 7 Unlock Company Profile
Baidu 7 Unlock Company Profile
Visa 6 Unlock Company Profile
Accenture 6 Unlock Company Profile
Dell Technologies 6 Unlock Company Profile
Admetsys 6 Unlock Company Profile
YouGetItBack 6 Unlock Company Profile
Lookout 6 Unlock Company Profile
China UnionPay 6 Unlock Company Profile
Swiss Re 5 Unlock Company Profile
Ovo Automotive 5 Unlock Company Profile
PokitDok 5 Unlock Company Profile
Intel 5 Unlock Company Profile
Quanta Computer 4 Unlock Company Profile
The Hartford Financial Services Group 4 Unlock Company Profile
The Travelers 4 Unlock Company Profile
LyondellBasell Industries 4 Unlock Company Profile
Waystar 4 Unlock Company Profile
Blancco Technology Group 4 Unlock Company Profile
Personics 3 Unlock Company Profile
Zhejiang Shuqin Technology 3 Unlock Company Profile
Lufax 3 Unlock Company Profile
Axinan 3 Unlock Company Profile
China United Network Communications 3 Unlock Company Profile
Aon 2 Unlock Company Profile

Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance (State Farm) is one of the leading patent filers in claims settlement blockchains. It is an early adopter of distributed ledger technologies such as blockchain to reduce expenses and make the claim settlement process more efficient and secure. State Farm and United Services Automobile Association (USAA) launched a blockchain-based project to automate the time-consuming processing of subrogation claims in January 2021. A year later, the company was granted a patent for a method and system of using blockchain to manage and resolve subrogation claims between a claimant and a defendant with arbitration.

United Services Automobile Association (USAA), Memjet Technology, and Alibaba Group are some of the other leading patent filers in the claims settlement blockchain space.

In terms of application diversity, Healthy io held the top position, while Apogee Technology and Memjet Technology stood in second and third positions, respectively. By means of geographic reach, Memjet Technology leads the pack, followed by Apogee Technology and The Saudi Public Investment Fund.

To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the insurance industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Blockchain in Insurance.

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GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.

GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.