• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'

3

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'

3

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
TechMastering Data

Why Warren Buffett May Be Wrong on AI and Insurance

Jeff John Roberts
By
Jeff John Roberts
Jeff John Roberts
Editor, Finance and Crypto
Down Arrow Button Icon
Jeff John Roberts
By
Jeff John Roberts
Jeff John Roberts
Editor, Finance and Crypto
Down Arrow Button Icon
May 18, 2017, 10:03 AM ET
Tesla Introduces Self-Driving Features With Software Upgrade
A member of the media test drives a Tesla Motors Inc. Model S car equipped with Autopilot in Palo Alto, California, U.S., on Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2015. Photograph by Paul Morris—Bloomberg via Getty Images

The Oracle of Omaha this month warned that artificial intelligence poses a threat to Berkshire Hathaway’s auto insurance business. Speaking at the company’s annual meeting, Berkshire CEO Warren Buffett said the use of AI in self-driving cars will mean fewer drivers and fewer customers for the company’s Geico insurance products.

Turns out Buffett may have spoken too soon. According to a new report from Accenture, the overall auto insurance will actually grow in the future, creating $81 billion in new revenue between 2020 and 2025.

The report, published on Thursday, explains that self-driving cars will lead to a big drop in individual insurance premiums. But that drop will be more than offset by new categories of car insurance, especially ones related to cybersecurity, which Accenture says will be worth $12 billion in 2025.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

The report also points to new opportunities in product liability insurance related to autonomous vehicles (predicted value of $2.5 billion) and a smaller opportunity ($0.5 billion) in the form of insuring infrastructure like cloud computing that will be needed to run fleets of driverless cars.

Here is a chart that shows how Accenture believes the new products will, for a time, buoy the auto insurance market even as sales conventional premiums begin to stall and decline:

According to John Cusano, the global head of insurance for Accenture, many auto insurance claims in the future will be different than ones we see today. For instance, insurers will have to pay out for incidents such as faulty AI products or a hacker stealing personal data from a vehicle. Cusano adds that the new opportunities are significant but not every insurance company is equally positioned to take advantage of them.

“Obviously, the ones who will be most challenged will be those on the retail side of the business since the new risks are on the commercial side. Retail insurers will have to transform their business along the way,” he tells Fortune.

This suggests the likes of Geico will indeed face pressure but that they still have time to adapt and grab a share of the commercial market. And in the short term, Cusano says the growth of autonomous vehicle technology will actually bolster retail insurers. That’s because cars now come with more expensive AI-related technology, like cameras and sensors, which make the cost of repairing a fender bender much higher than it used to be.

A final wild card in auto insurance markets of the future is the potential entry into the business of manufacturers. Cusano says Tesla’s small forays into the insurance markets could expand. Meanwhile, Google is using its fleet of self-driving vehicles to amass huge troves of risk-related data, which could put the search giant in a position to join other new entrants as a fierce competitor in the insurance market.

About the Author
Jeff John Roberts
By Jeff John RobertsEditor, Finance and Crypto
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Jeff John Roberts is the Finance and Crypto editor at Fortune, overseeing coverage of the blockchain and how technology is changing finance.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

ta
EconomySocial Media
They created AI nudes that got millions of views online. Now they’re being charged with crimes
By Jake Offenhartz and The Associated PressMay 22, 2026
10 minutes ago
Steve Wozniak
SuccessCareers
Steve Wozniak says he didn’t cofound Apple to ‘make money’—he only did it because he was rejected by HP 5 times, and for years his pay was just $50
By Preston ForeMay 22, 2026
12 minutes ago
zuckerberg
CybersecuritySocial Media
A school district’s lawsuit against Meta for mental health costs was set for trial next month. Zuckerberg settled
By Barbara Ortutay and The Associated PressMay 22, 2026
14 minutes ago
In this photo illustration, a Microsoft logo is displayed on a smartphone with Artificial Intelligence (AI) symbols on the background.
AICFO Daily
Inside Microsoft’s high-stakes push to win back its AI lead
By Sheryl EstradaMay 22, 2026
3 hours ago
dario
NewslettersTerm Sheet
‘A pressure cooker ready to explode’: The wild secondaries scramble for Anthropic shares
By Allie GarfinkleMay 22, 2026
4 hours ago
Kevin Warsh, U.S. President Donald Trump's nominee for Chair of the Federal Reserve, departs following his Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs confirmation hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on April 21, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Big TechMarkets
Wall Street has pretty much written off the idea of a Fed rate cut at Kevin Warsh’s first meeting
By Eleanor PringleMay 22, 2026
4 hours ago

Most Popular

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
Success
Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
By Preston ForeMay 21, 2026
24 hours ago
Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'
Success
Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'
By Preston ForeMay 20, 2026
2 days ago
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Workplace Culture
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
By Preston ForeMay 19, 2026
3 days ago
Pay transparency is exposing a bigger problem: Most companies can't explain why they pay what they pay
Workplace Culture
Pay transparency is exposing a bigger problem: Most companies can't explain why they pay what they pay
By Sydney LakeMay 20, 2026
2 days ago
Current price of oil as of May 21, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of May 21, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 21, 2026
1 day ago
A 'proudly autistic' workplace expert says putting neurodivergent employees in a typical office is like dropping a polar bear in Austin, Texas
Conferences
A 'proudly autistic' workplace expert says putting neurodivergent employees in a typical office is like dropping a polar bear in Austin, Texas
By Tristan BoveMay 20, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.