Capitola Insurance Services LLC, a startup using artificial intelligence to streamline commercial insurance deals, has raised $15.6 million in funding. 

The Series A round, announced today, was led by Munich Re Ventures. Returning Capitola backer Lightspeed Venture Partners participated as well. The startup previously raised a $5 million seed round in 2021, the year it was founded.

Enterprises don’t buy insurance policies directly from insurers, but rather go through an intermediary known as a broker. The broker helps identify a policy that will meet a company’s requirements. It then finds an insurer willing to underwrite that policy.

Mountain View, California-based Capitola offers a software platform that promises to streamline the work of commercial insurance brokers. The company says its platform makes brokerage firms’ employees more productive by reducing repetitive manual tasks.

Companies often buy insurance coverage for not one but multiple assets, such as servers and manufacturing equipment. Each such item carries a different level of risk. A commercial insurance provider will only cover an asset if that asset’s risk level aligns with its internal rules.

Finding an insurer willing to cover a company’s assets is one of the most complicated aspects of insurance brokers’ work. According to Capitola, its platform can ease the task. The platform uses artificial intelligence to measure the insurance-related risks associated with a company’s assets and then finds insurers willing to underwrite policies at that risk level.

A broker evaluates multiple factors when deciding which insurer to choose. Capitola says its platform provides data that helps brokers perform such evaluations faster.

Commercial insurance policies have a so-called attachment point, which specifies the maximum loss the insurance company will cover. This metric influences the monthly fee that a company must pay for its policy. As part of its platform, Capitola provides an analytics tool that enables users to compare different attachment points and their associated monthly fees to find the optimal  combination.

It also provides access to other data, such as the revenue that a broker can expect to generate from selling an insurance policy. The company visualizes the data in charts to ease analysis for users. 

According to Capitola, its platform can help brokers not only sell new policies but also renew existing ones. It detects when a policy is about to expire and enables brokers to request a renewal from the insurer underwriting that policy. Additionally, it offers features that make it possible to switch to a new insurance provider when necessary.

Capitola’s platform also provides other productivity features. It includes a task assignment tool that enables managers to coordinate who is responsible for which aspect of a commercial insurance deal. When a company is seeking to buy a new insurance policy or renew an existing one, a broker’s employees can use it to generate a proposal automatically.

“The insurance industry has seen many technological advancements over the years, but very little attention has been given to the insurance professionals and the tools they use,” said co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Sivan Iram. “Our platform brings together brokers and underwriters, removing many of the operational inefficiencies around manual processes and repetitive tasks to allow them to focus on what they do best.”

Capitola will use the proceeds from its latest $15.6 million round to grow its presence in the U.S. It also plans to develop new features, including market intelligence tools for brokers. 

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