Insurance leaders know the landscape is changing, but knowing where to focus can feel overwhelming. Futurist and tech entrepreneur Melissa Clark-Reynolds ONZM cuts through the noise with a clear-eyed view of three of the most important shifts that will reshape health and life insurance over the coming decade: the rise of GLP-1 drugs, the transformation of customer acquisition through AI, and the widening affordability gap.
The GLP-1 Drug Revolution
At least 1 in 8 Americans has now tried GLP-1 medications like Ozempic and Wegovy, and Australia isn’t far behind. As these drugs come off patent in the next decade, adoption will only accelerate. The implications extend well beyond weight management as well. Demand for diabetes and hypertension medication is already shifting, while an unexpected consequence is emerging in dental care: increased acid reflux among users may be affecting dental health, raising questions about how insurers should price and plan for these downstream effects.
AI Search is Changing the Funnel
While most insurers are exploring AI for claims processing and actuarial work, Melissa highlights a blind spot: how AI-powered search is transforming customer acquisition. Traditional SEO focused on what companies said about themselves. AI search agents, by contrast, prioritise what others say about you. Reddit and Wikipedia now rank as the first places AI tools look when consumers research a new health insurer. For an industry that has not traditionally marketed in these spaces, this represents a fundamental shift in how reputations are built and customers are won.
Designing for the Affordability Divide
Growing income disparity means a one-size-fits-all product approach no longer works. Melissa argues that insurers need to design differentiated offerings for both ends of the market: those with wealth and those facing unemployment or reduced disposable income. The opportunity, she notes, is that profitability exists at both ends of this spectrum, but only for those willing to think differently about product design and pricing.
Trained by the Institute for the Future and recognised with an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) for her services to the technology industry, Melissa brings grounded foresight and practical frameworks to leaders navigating uncertainty. Her keynotes help organisations anticipate change, challenge assumptions, and build strategies that turn today's signals into tomorrow's competitive advantage.
