Kingstone to Use AI in Risk Management for Strengthening Wildfire Risk Analytics

Kingstone partners with ZestyAI to utilize advanced wildfire risk analytics, marking a strategic expansion into the California homeowners insurance market.

On April 8, Kingstone Companies, Inc., a property and casualty insurance holding firm, announced that it would be partnering with ZestyAI to support its planned expansion into the California homeowners market. Under the agreement terms, ZestyAI’s Z-FIRE™ wildlife risk analytics model will exemplify the use of AI in risk management along with the other deployed tools to analyze wildlife exposure at the individual-property level. This will also assist in underwriting in regions affected by natural disasters.

Furthermore, the zestyAI model is capable of evaluating the unique characteristics of each property, including defensible space, building materials, topography, and vegetation at a minute level. This allows Kingstone to improve rating and underwriting precision by possessing the tools to execute insurance risk analytics within the same territory. Additionally, portfolio oversight also strengthens as a result. Z-FIRE™ was the first AI-based wildlife model included in an approved carrier rate filing in California, being used by carriers across Western wildfire states at present.

Reflecting on the partnership’s potential, Sarah Chen, SVP, Kingstone’s Chief Actuary and Head of Product Management, noted, “Our California entry reflects the same disciplined, data-driven approach that has driven our results in New York. “ZestyAI’s Z-FIRE model complements our Select platform by providing the property-level wildfire intelligence we need to rate and underwrite with precision in a complex and dynamic market like California.” Attilah Toh, Founder and CEO of ZestyAI, echoed the statement by highlighting the wildlife risk-induced trend of insurance industries embracing more advanced analytics. According to him, insurers can make confident decisions about their areas of growth, managing exposure, and serving communities in wildfire-prone regions. CIO Bulletin views this partnership as a carefully calibrated strategy for Kingstone to build on the operational and underwriting transformation it has executed over the past four years.