APRA Member Suzanne Smith’s remarks to the 2026 ICA conference, "Insurer of the future"

For compliance and risk leaders, the signal is that APRA expects boards and executives to understand how digital innovation, data and new operating models change risk profiles and customer outcomes. The published excerpt contains no new rules or deadlines, so immediate compliance burden is low; however, firms should treat the speech as a strategic prompt. Insurers should review technology and data strategies against existing prudential expectations, including operational resilience, information security, data governance and consumer protection.

Governance should ensure innovation is subject to appropriate risk assessment, model oversight, third-party and cloud dependency management, and fair customer treatment. Smaller insurers may face proportionately greater pressure to access expertise and scale; larger firms should monitor competitive shifts and supervisory expectations. Actionable next steps: brief the board on technology-driven risk and opportunity; map innovation initiatives to APRA prudential standards; test resilience and data controls; assess whether AI and automation change underwriting, pricing, claims or distribution risk; and monitor APRA follow-up for supervisory expectations.

This is not a deadline-driven compliance item, but firms that wait may face competitive and supervisory disadvantage.