Sales Column: Why AI requires us to become lifelong learners

Continuous learning is essential to succeed in our industry. In the age of AI, it’s becoming critical.  

In June, I went to an artificial intelligence (AI) bootcamp at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and spent a week learning from MIT professors and tech leaders alongside 70 other CEOs from 30 countries.

Before attending, I thought I had a solid grasp of AI. When I got to MIT, I quickly realized I didn’t.

It was a valuable wake-up call on how fast things are evolving. AI will transform how we do everything across our business, and this industry as a whole. AI works best when it’s trained using organized information: it can identify patterns, spot anomalies and uncover insights across large datasets. With all our structured data, I don’t think many industries are more ripe for AI than insurance.

This is something your brokerage needs to prepare for now. AI is no longer just an IT project. It needs to be embedded in every department. Your team should be exploring different tools and learning how to get the most from this technology.

I’ve recently been playing around with Replit, which lets you build websites and landing pages using simple prompts, and ElevenLabs, an AI voice generator that could help remap your Interactive Voice Response or build training tools.

If you don’t start experimenting and seeing what’s possible, your competitors will outperform you. It’s that simple.

At our brokerage, we’re looking to build an internal AI council with representation from each department to develop playbooks, shape policy, drive adoption, and ensure our team knows how to use AI responsibly and effectively.

Regardless of role, upskilling should be a part of everyone’s strategy. Organizational designs will shift, and AI will make some jobs unnecessary. It’s important to remember that people plus AI outperform either on their own. At the same time, that won’t mean all people. Prioritize learning, training and adapting to make sure you and your team stay relevant.

You’ve got to be cautious with AI. We’re already seeing companies walk straight into bear traps because they didn’t have protocols in place. Security and privacy are real threats, and you need to pay attention to how you’re using these tools – especially free, public ones like ChatGPT – to make sure you’re not leaking confidential company or client information. AI can allow you to go further, faster, but you have to do it safely.

While it’s tempting, don’t instantly jump to client-facing AI applications. The risks are still too high. AI can easily get things wrong or mishandle sensitive data, for which you might be held liable and it could hurt your brand. Instead, start with targeted use cases for things like quote triage, call summarization, intake classification and email.

Use AI to help figure out how to do or say something, not what to say. AI is great at bluffing. If you’re relying on it to drive messaging, it’s going to be confidently incorrect and spotty.

But be curious and open to what’s ahead. AI is going to be a major turning point for insurance. I don’t want to be left behind. Neither should you.

Adam Mitchell is CEO of Mitch Insurance, a Whitby, Ont.-based insurance brokerage. This article is excerpted from one that appeared in the August-September 2025 print edition of Canadian Underwriter.