Irish insurtech ecosystem surpasses 120 companies

12 start-ups join accelerator programme aimed at connecting founders with insurers, investors and industry leaders.

Ireland’s growing reputation as a hub for insurance innovation has received another boost with the announcement of the second cohort of the InsTech.ie Foundry programme, a flagship initiative designed to help emerging insurtech businesses bring new solutions to market.

The 12 start-ups selected for Foundry 2.0 are developing technologies that address some of the insurance sector’s most pressing challenges, including life underwriting, claims management, pensions, climate risk, compliance, reinsurance and broker operations.

Delivered by InsTech.ie in partnership with Furthr, the programme seeks to position Ireland as a leading testbed for insurance innovation by creating direct connections between ambitious founders and major insurance organisations. Participants gain access to insurers, investors, experienced entrepreneurs and industry experts, including organisations such as Allianz, Aviva, AXA, FBD, Irish Life and Canada Life.

Ireland’s growing insurtech ecosystem

The announcement comes as Ireland’s insurtech ecosystem continues to expand. InsTech.ie now tracks more than 120 Irish insurtech companies and works with 24 insurance industry members and eight innovation partners. Ireland is also home to more than 180 insurers and reinsurers, including eight of the world’s ten largest global insurance companies.

Gary Leyden, CEO of InsTech.ie, said the programme is helping founders accelerate their growth by connecting them directly with the industry.

“The first Foundry cohort showed what can happen when ambitious founders are given direct access to the insurance expertise, networks and decision-makers that can help turn promising ideas into commercially viable businesses. With Cohort 2, we want to build on that momentum and give another group of companies the opportunity to validate their solutions, develop meaningful industry relationships and accelerate their path to market. Ireland has a unique combination of insurance expertise and technology talent, and the Foundry is about bringing those two strengths together.”

A highlight of the programme launch was participation from FINEOS founder and chief executive Michael Kelly, whose company has grown from an Irish software venture into a global insurtech success story over the past three decades.

Kelly said initiatives such as the Foundry can help emerging businesses build the foundations needed for international growth.

“We’re delighted to support the InsTech.ie Foundry and the next generation of insurance technology companies coming out of Ireland. FINEOS was founded in Dublin more than 30 years ago and has grown into a global business by staying focused on the insurance industry, listening closely to our customers, and continuing to innovate as their needs have evolved. Ireland has a strong track record of building technology businesses with global reach, and initiatives like the Foundry can help emerging companies develop the industry knowledge, relationships and experience they need to succeed internationally. I look forward to sharing some of what we have learned along the way.”

Cohort spans emerging insurance challenges

The second Foundry cohort showcases a broad range of innovation across the insurance value chain.

Among the participants is Fairwrite, founded by Sinéad Lucey Brennan, which is creating a technology-led managing general agent focused on making life and protection insurance more inclusive for people with mental health conditions, disabilities and neurodivergence.

TalkTerms AI / Swift Settle, founded by Gary Lyons, is developing an AI-powered decision-support platform to assist claims and complaints professionals while maintaining human oversight.

Maximo, led by Richie Walsh, combines pensions, tax and open banking data to help consumers better understand pension contributions and available tax reliefs.

Insurteam MGA, led by Danielle Doherty, is building an embedded travel insurance platform that integrates insurance purchasing into customer checkouts while supporting claims management through WhatsApp.

Alteric AI, founded by Donal McCormack, is developing technology that automates brokerage workflows across renewals, claims servicing and new business activity.

Other participants include Vardus, a compliance technology company; Model Library / Elliptic, which focuses on climate-risk modelling; RMI Agentic, which addresses insurance risks linked to autonomous AI agents; and Global Nutrition Value, whose platform creates auditable evidence trails for food safety and compliance data.

The cohort also includes Voxalytics, which analyses broker-client conversations to automate administration and identify opportunities around customer retention and growth; SeatFair Technologies, which is exploring optimisation technology for reinsurance placements; and Finch AI Systems / LitAgent, whose explainable AI platform supports personal injury reserving and settlement valuation.

Building on early successes

The Foundry programme follows a successful inaugural cohort, which attracted more than 30 applications and selected ten companies to participate.

Alumni from the first intake include Solvera Underwriting, ITUS Secure Technologies, Finerty, Halo, Protostars AI, Suredocs, Amethyst Care, BlueDot, ICE ID and Regzact.

Several participants have already achieved notable milestones. ITUS Secure Technologies was selected as one of just 20 companies worldwide to present at Lloyd’s Lab Accelerator Pitch Day from a pool of 220 international applicants, while Solvera Underwriting has continued advancing its parametric insurance proposition for the renewable energy sector.

Over the coming months, members of the new cohort will take part in seven structured in-person sessions focused on proposition validation, commercial readiness and industry engagement.

The programme will culminate in a Showcase Day in April 2027, where participants will present their progress to insurers, investors and industry stakeholders. Upon completion, the founders will join the wider InsTech.ie community, further strengthening Ireland’s growing network of insurance and technology innovators.

Top image: Gary Leyden, CEO of InsTech.ie, speaking at the launch of Foundry Cohort 2, a programme supporting Irish insurtech start-ups developing AI, climate risk, claims and insurance technology solutions

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