Kalepa joins forces with Hinterland for AI-driven underwriting
October 21, 2025
Kalepa has been selected by Hinterland Insurance to deploy its AI underwriting platform across the MGA's property and specialty lines divisions. The goal: give underwriters clearer, faster insights so they can make stronger decisions, scale operations, and work more effectively with distribution partners.
What this means for underwriters
- One interface for risk selection: a "single pane of glass" that consolidates data, documents, third-party sources, and model outputs.
- Fewer manual lookups and less swivel-chair work across systems.
- Faster quote turnaround and tighter adherence to appetite and guidelines.
- Cleaner broker interactions with clearer rationale behind decisions.
Why Hinterland chose Kalepa
After reviewing more than a dozen AI underwriting firms, Hinterland named Kalepa its preferred technology partner. The platform will centralize risk data and underwriting signals to support consistent, confident decision-making and quicker scaling.
Lee Glaser, CEO of Hinterland, said, "Hinterland has embarked on an ambitious growth journey, and partnering with Kalepa is a critical step in that vision. Kalepa will empower us to grow with discipline, deliver superior underwriting outcomes, and solidify our position in the market."
Doug Thierjung, CIO at Hinterland, added, "We evaluated over a dozen AI underwriting companies, and Kalepa stood out as the very best. Kalepa will allow us to engage with distribution partners and scale our operations faster than ever before. Their single pane of glass will put critical insights at our underwriters' fingertips, enabling them to make underwriting decisions with confidence."
Daniel Hillman, COO and co-founder of Kalepa, said, "Hinterland has assembled a top-notch team of professionals and dedicated divisions that address critical market needs across Specialty Property, General Commercial, and Difference in Conditions. Their commitment to data-driven decisions in order to drive superior underwriting outcomes is a perfect match for Kalepa's best-in-market AI. We are honoured to support Hinterland as they accelerate their growth."
Operational benefits you can expect
- Risk triage that prioritizes submissions aligned to appetite and margin targets.
- Automated data enrichment from internal and external sources to reduce manual prep.
- Clear audit trails for pricing, referrals, and bound decisions.
- Improved broker experience through faster responses and transparent reasoning.
Impact across key lines
The collaboration covers Specialty Property, General Commercial, and Difference in Conditions. For these lines, consistent data intake and unified risk views help reduce leakage, enforce guidelines, and support profitable growth without adding headcount at the same pace as premium.
How to get your team ready
- Define underwriting guardrails up front: appetite, referral triggers, and pricing corridors.
- Inventory data sources and map them to each decision point in your workflow.
- Set a change management plan: training, playbooks, and a feedback loop with underwriters and brokers.
- Stand up governance aligned to emerging guidance such as the NIST AI Risk Management Framework and NAIC AI Principles.
Upskilling your underwriting staff
If your team is building AI fluency for underwriting workflows, curated training can shorten the learning curve. Explore role-based options here: AI courses by job.
Bottom line: Hinterland is centralizing underwriting intelligence in one place. Expect faster decisions, stronger consistency, and better broker engagement-without sacrificing discipline.
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