IRDAI Forms AI Working Group for Insurance Sector
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) constituted a seven-member working group on Artificial Intelligence for the insurance sector on 18 June 2026. The group has been tasked with preparing governance frameworks, best practices, safeguards, and an AI audit framework for insurance use cases.
Working Group Composition
The working group is chaired by Sandeep K. Shukla, Director of the International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad. Deepak Gaikwad, General Manager and Chief Information Security Officer of IRDAI, serves as the member-convener. The other members include senior officials and experts from CERT-In, Reserve Bank Information Technology, SBI Life Insurance, Star Health & Allied Insurance, and ICICI Lombard General Insurance.
Mandate and Scope of Work
The working group will study the impact of Artificial Intelligence on insurers, policyholders, and the insurance ecosystem. It will examine risks, governance requirements, ethical use, transparency, explainability, and data protection in AI-driven insurance applications. The group will also examine AI use in claims processing and fraud prevention.
Regulatory and Supervisory Context
The working group will review global regulatory and supervisory approaches to Artificial Intelligence in the insurance sector. It will suggest pre-deployment and post-deployment audit requirements for AI tools used by insurers. IRDAI has given the group three months to submit its recommendations.
Important Facts for Exams
- IRDAI was established under the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999.
- CERT-In is the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
- ReBIT stands for Reserve Bank Information Technology Private Limited.
- Artificial Intelligence in insurance is used in claims processing, fraud detection, underwriting, and customer service systems.
Related Cybersecurity Context
IRDAI issued revised guidelines on information and cybersecurity in April 2026 for regulated entities. The guidelines refer to evolving threat landscapes, including AI-driven cyber threats.
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Sajeev
June 20, 2026 at 11:04 pmIt is mandatory that health insurance companies provide customer service without fail.
A patient is hospitalized only due to their health condition and on a doctor’s advice — never by choice. For example, if someone falls seriously ill due to food poisoning and their condition worsens, they are admitted only after a doctor’s consultation and necessary tests.
Yet, after 3-4 days of hospitalization, many insurers reject the claim at the time of discharge. This is an unethical business practice.
People may watch the same movie or visit the same shopping mall multiple times, but no one wants to be admitted to a hospital unless it is absolutely necessary.
Insurance companies advertise impressively but often fail in customer service. In some cases, they even refuse to pay reimbursements despite a favourable verdict from the Insurance Ombudsman.
I hope IRDAI, with the help of AI tools, will monitor this closely and take immediate action to protect policyholders.