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MetLife Joins the MIT Media Lab, Adding to Its Multi-Pronged Innovation Ecosystem

MET | April 10, 2018

MetLife Joins the MIT Media Lab, Adding to Its Multi-Pronged Innovation Ecosystem

Today, MetLife announced a multi-year collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) focused on accelerating innovative technologies that will transform the insurance industry. The announcement furthers MetLife’s comprehensive and disciplined innovation approach of bringing together leading companies and institutions to identify and create disruptive solutions for the industry.

“Every industry is impacted by the exponential growth in technology, the rise in globalization, and changing consumer demographics,” said Marty Lippert, executive vice president and head of MetLife Global Technology & Operations. “Our collaboration with MIT is the latest proof point of a strategic approach that is providing MetLife first-mover advantage in identifying and capitalizing on emerging consumer and technology trends.”

MetLife joined the MIT Media Lab as a Consortium Lab Member. The Media Lab has developed tools, materials and methods that have led to transformative tech innovations such as the touch screen, GPS and wearables. Today, they have 26 research labs and approximately 450 active projects. MetLife’s collaboration with the Media Lab will focus on disruptive applications of these technologies for the insurance industry.

MetLife is also leveraging MIT’s advanced research in the areas of sensors (Internet of Things), social data, digital records, machine learning, and data science to reimagine underwriting to enable an enhanced customer experience with simplified underwriting, improved risk management and differentiated pricing.

The collaboration with MIT is the latest addition to MetLife’s growing innovation ecosystem. In January, MetLife announced the launch of two InsurTech investment programs for start-up companies: MetLife Digital Ventures and MetLife Digital Accelerator powered by Techstars.

Backed by a $100 million co-investment fund, MetLife Digital Ventures accelerates MetLife’s transformation through direct investment in strategically aligned start-up companies that can bring new forms of value to MetLife customers. Through direct investment, MetLife will have an opportunity to influence the direction of these early-stage companies that offer products and capabilities that are strategically important to the organization. The launch of MetLife Digital Ventures brings to the next level MetLife’s existing strong relationships with 16 of the leading venture capital firms. These long-established relationships continue to provide MetLife unique access to a portfolio of top-tier investment opportunities.

The MetLife Digital Accelerator powered by Techstars is a first-of-its-kind program that identifies and mentors startups around the globe that are developing industry-disrupting technologies in the insurance space. Startups selected will be hosted at MetLife’s Global Technology Campus in Cary, North Carolina, for an intensive 13-week program focused on the development and acceleration of transformational ideas.

MetLife also works directly with startups through LumenLab, MetLife Asia’s Singapore-based innovation center. Through its open innovation program, “collab”, Lumenlab invites entrepreneurs and insurtechs to scale their business with MetLife.

About MetLife

MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), through its subsidiaries and affiliates ("MetLife"), is one of the world's leading financial services companies, providing insurance, annuities, employee benefits and asset management to help its individual and institutional customers navigate their changing world. Founded in 1868, MetLife has operations in more than 40 countries and holds leading market positions in the United States, Japan, Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, visit www.metlife.com.