At the Insurtech Insights Europe conference, we spoke with Kobi Bendelak, CEO of InsurTech Israel, about the resilience and momentum of the Israeli insurtech ecosystem. Despite significant travel disruption and ongoing regional challenges, Kobi highlighted how a delegation of more than 20 startups made the journey to the event, reflecting both the determination of the ecosystem and the growing international demand for Israeli insurance innovation. The startups represented a broad range of areas including AI, claims technology, operational tooling, and customer service solutions, with the conference providing opportunities to connect with insurers, investors, and global partners.

The discussion focused heavily on the rapid evolution of AI within insurance, particularly the emergence of agentic AI systems. Kobi described how the industry is moving beyond traditional generative AI toward autonomous AI agents capable of managing workflows, making decisions, and coordinating complex processes at scale. He also emphasised the growing importance of governance and oversight within these systems, explaining that as AI agents become faster and more capable, insurers will increasingly require additional layers of AI supervision and orchestration to manage risk, compliance, and operational control.

Alongside the technology conversation, Kobi outlined the broader mission of InsurTech Israel in supporting startups through global expansion, accelerator programmes, marketing support, and international roadshows. He explained how the organisation is helping emerging companies access new markets and build partnerships across Europe, the US, and Latin America. Throughout the discussion, the focus remained on creating opportunities for startups to scale internationally while helping insurers prepare for the next wave of AI-driven transformation across the industry.