Elad Tsur of Planck On the Future of Artificial Intelligence

An Interview With David Leichner

AI is still, for many, uncharted territory. Not only in insurance but across multiple disciplines, we have seen hesitancy around full adoption. With many unaware of how AI may benefit their particular business or how it can be safely integrated, we run the risk of leaving a critical proponent of innovation untapped, especially within more legacy industries.

As a part of our series about the future of Artificial Intelligence, I had the pleasure of interviewing Elad Tsur, Co-Founder and CEO of Planck.

Elad is a serial entrepreneur with in-depth expertise in machine learning, big data, and AI. As the CEO and Co-Founder of Planck, he is revolutionizing commercial insurance with a GenAI-enhanced underwriting workbench. Elad is a recognized researcher with a strong academic background. He was the former Lead Architect of the Salesforce Einstein platform, and former founder of BlueTail (acquired by Salesforce). He is also a special advisor to the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office for biometric applications, with a specific focus on facial-recognition technology.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Can you share with us the ‘backstory” of how you decided to pursue this career path in AI?

Thank you for having me! My background leading into AI, GenAI specifically, is actually quite interesting. For many years before officially launching my entrepreneurial career, I worked within the Israel intelligence forces — where I was deeply involved with AI before it was even called this. There I was able to foster a deep passion for the power of AI to truly revolutionize homeland security and other national security challenges. After leaving in 2009, I co-founded my first startup, BlueTail, which was later acquired by Salesforce. From there, based on a family history in insurance, I branched off to build Planck with my co-founder Amir Cohen, and have been working to integrate the power of GenAI into the commercial insurance space ever since.

What lessons can others learn from your story?

I would recommend anyone out there who is considering an entrepreneurial career to try it and follow that dream. Make sure you are addressing a big market, and that you have some unique characteristics which helps to explain “why you amongst others?”. I love making connections between different domains, as I believe similar technology can help to solve business pain points in many different industries. So, if you have a deep understanding of some technology and can transfer that knowledge into a different field, that sounds to me like a great place to look for opening a startup.

Can you tell our readers about the most interesting projects you are working on now?

Planck has quite a bit in the pipeline, but our most recent product, Planck PLUS, has been especially rewarding to watch as it comes to full fruition. As our premier product, commercial insurance carriers and MGAs can now leverage a GenAI-enhanced workbench to establish a reliable, real-time data resource for more accurate business risk underwriting. This digital mentor and co-pilot generates complete queries based on basic underwriter inputs and even suggests new questions to ask based on models trained specifically in commercial insurance. It’s like having a veteran underwriter sitting right next to you.

The current insurance underwriting process is flawed, riddled with incomplete information, and errors from miscommunications between agents and underwriters. Underwriting recommendations from Planck’s platform will assess and triage large numbers of submissions, reducing manual assessments for more efficient and accurate intake and renewal processes.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

In the case of Planck, there are too many to mention. I firmly believe the strengths of the Planck PLUS underwriting workbench are an extension of the strengths of the Planck team. We have some of the most brilliant minds in the industry working on and enhancing the Planck platform with the latest technologies and applications. That’s why we are able to say that “seeing is believing” — because our team is doing things and building capabilities that simply weren’t possible even a few years ago.

But there is one person I want to mention here: my father. At the age of 14 I started my B.A. in computer science, even before starting high school, and my father was driving me to and from the university several times a week. Obviously, as a kid who was still living with my parents, I couldn’t rent a place near the campus, and couldn’t drive. And he did that while managing hundreds of employees in one of the biggest insurance agencies in Israel. And our discussions on the road were really character building. Listening to how he was speaking with his employees on business calls, his thoughts and vision, and mostly the way he understood and solved problems in real-time — all of that was the best business school I could have asked for.

What are the 5 things that most excite you about the AI industry? Why?

1. First and foremost, I have seen AI transform the way in which people are able to work on a global scale. It is exciting to witness legacy processes be innovated with the power of advanced intelligence to support human productivity and allow a multitude of industries to unlock (or at least begin to unlock) the full potential of their workforce through this technology.
2. As we have seen already, AI has grown to become a powerful tool for industries around the world. As we continue to nurture its development, we will be able to leverage more accurate models to support real-time data gathering and processing on a grander scale — which will result in much wider applications of the technology.
3. AI as a whole has been incredible to be a part of and to implement into our company’s offering. Its ability to be trained for both broad and niche industry-specific models, each with their own unique capabilities, is fascinating. This level of customization to suit your business needs and the needs of your customers opens a door to innovation beyond anything we have previously experienced.
4. While many fear that AI may replace the essential role of human intelligence, I see this as a compelling way for us not to replace human beings in complex decisioning, but more so establish decision-aiding platforms — providing data and reasoning that may not have been available previously to ensure we are creating the most precise outcomes possible.
5. Specific to the commercial insurance space, AI holds an incredible potential to transform the way in which we assess risk. Each role within an insurance company can be much more efficient, spending more time truly analyzing anomalies and unique risks without wasting time and resources on mundane, routine tasks. Underwriting teams in particular stand to benefit greatly from enhanced AI capabilities.

What are the 5 things that concern you about the AI industry? Why?

1. With any new technology, there are of course areas we need to be highly vigilant of during and beyond the development phase. There is the concern of AI hallucinations, in which a false or misleading response may be generated. This poses an obvious issue, but one that can be resolved through proper generation of data resources for AI to draw accurate responses from. This is a pain point we at Planck have worked extensively to remedy — ensuring that our models are trained on the most thorough and in-depth risk data, and even taking it a step further with integrated GenAI to understand the “why” behind each insight our platform is able to produce.
2. Security is another area that is highly topical. While AI provides considerable value, it is important as we continue to implement this technology that we are keeping data privacy and potential security breaches top-of-mind. If organizations using AI do not implement secure methods, they run the risk of facing serious vulnerabilities.
3. As recently highlighted in President Biden’s Executive Order on AI, regulation is an ongoing hurdle for the entire ecosystem. Currently, I believe that the government has been approaching this aspect too slowly. We need to regulate ourselves to define what is right and what is wrong, and what is adequate. Industry leaders should share their opinions and knowledge to help build a common vision. In order to create a flourishing and safe AI industry, we must develop better guidelines.
4. AI is still, for many, uncharted territory. Not only in insurance but across multiple disciplines, we have seen hesitancy around full adoption. With many unaware of how AI may benefit their particular business or how it can be safely integrated, we run the risk of leaving a critical proponent of innovation untapped, especially within more legacy industries.
5. In the same vein as above, it has been difficult to fully educate the public and workforce on the safe uses of AI. My fear is not in AI replacing humans, but rather people remaining stuck in the mindset that AI will take jobs and leave people obsolete. As with any new technology, there will be questions and initial concerns with how it may be used — but it is our job as AI adopters to ensure these worries are addressed properly.

As you know, there is an ongoing debate between prominent scientists, (personified as a debate between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg,) about whether advanced AI poses an existential danger to humanity. What is your position about this?

It’s important to start by differentiating between real-world AI applications and the exaggerated scenarios that play out in science fiction. The current state of AI is more focused on narrow applications, such as data analysis, pattern recognition, and optimization. These applications have the potential to bring significant benefits to various industries, including insurance. Currently, I think humans still pose a greater threat to humanity than AI.

But these innovations move very quickly — too quick even for government regulation to keep pace. As AI and GenAI capabilities evolve, the responsible development and application of these technologies becomes more and more vital. I recognize and support the need for self-regulated oversight to ensure that AI is used ethically and responsibly. This involves implementing strict guidelines and guardrails in the development process to prevent misuse and unintended consequences.

But at the end of the day, AI is just a tool. Humanity could have extinguished itself with rocks, metal, fire, engines, electricity, nuclear reactors, and many other technologies. AI can be used for good, and for bad, and it’s our responsibility to make sure it’s the former and not the latter.

What can be done to prevent such concerns from materializing? And what can be done to assure the public that there is nothing to be concerned about?

Ethical frameworks and industry standards can help guide the responsible development of AI. This includes GenAI-based transparency in AI systems, accountability for the decisions made by these systems, and safeguards to prevent biases and discrimination. Additionally, fostering collaboration between industry leaders, researchers, and policymakers is crucial to creating a regulatory environment that supports innovation while addressing potential risks.

This was the motivating factor for the Planck GenAI Summit at ITC Vegas 2023 — to unite industry leaders and explore how digital technology is reshaping commercial insurance, now and in the future. Our summit is a gathering place to share ideas, foster trust, and navigate the transformative potential of GenAI responsibly — ensuring a dynamic and prosperous future for both the commercial insurance industry and insurtech innovation. I am helping fellow CEOs in other industries to promote similar summits in their industries as well.

As you know, there are not that many women in your industry. Can you advise what is needed to engage more women into the AI industry?

Women are underrepresented in technology leadership, presenting fewer role models and possible allies for others entering the industry. This often starts at the ground level, where few women choose to be in STEM roles. Companies need to prioritize being more inclusive of women in their hiring, promotional, and cultural strategies. From Planck’s inception, we have sustained a conscientious internal effort to maintain a balanced culture, leading to our recognition as a top startup for representation in the Power in Diversity 2021 Women in Startups Report.

Planck also supports and volunteers with SheCodes, a non-profit organization that offers free training for women (by women) to code and be a developer. Our executives have refereed hack-a-thons and recruited women developers who have gone on to make amazing contributions to our organization. Sponsoring communities of women through meetups, creating a supportive environment for all employees to thrive with equal opportunities, and varied routes to success will enable an even brighter future for an industry that already has unimaginable potential.

How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world? Can you share a story?

Unfortunately, I am not able to share the projects and operations I was part of during my military service but I can just say that the AI platforms we have built and used have saved many lives. Besides that service, which I am very proud of, I am mentoring as many entrepreneurs as I can with the hope of giving them the golden advice that would help them make better decisions than I did — saving the need to learn from their own mistakes by learning from mine.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

Please feel free to visit our website at https://www.planckdata.com and follow us on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/planckdata/ , or follow me on my personal LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tsurelad

This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!

About The Interviewer: David Leichner is a veteran of the Israeli high-tech industry with significant experience in the areas of cyber and security, enterprise software and communications. At Cybellum, a leading provider of Product Security Lifecycle Management, David is responsible for creating and executing the marketing strategy and managing the global marketing team that forms the foundation for Cybellum’s product and market penetration. Prior to Cybellum, David was CMO at SQream and VP Sales and Marketing at endpoint protection vendor, Cynet. David is the Chairman of the Friends of Israel and Member of the Board of Trustees of the Jerusalem Technology College. He holds a BA in Information Systems Management and an MBA in International Business from the City University of New York.