Following the trend of tech incubator programmes set by City firms, insurance heavyweight Clyde & Co has launched a data analytics lab to develop products and services for its clients.
The new initiative is being ran in conjunction with University College London (UCL), with which the firm has a longstanding relationship.
Insurance partner Mark Wing and Clyde & Co’s innovation board are overseeing the project. The board, which was established in 2016, was designed to improve Clyde’s relationships with its clients by creating new products and services.
It comprises Wing and fellow partners Nigel Brook, Lee Bacon, Carolena Gordon, Leon Alexander, Patrick Murphy and Sally Sfeir-Tait , as well as chief strategy officer William Isaac, chief information officer Chris White and senior strategy manager Nadine Bairle.
Overall, the lab will be staffed by Clyde legal, data science and strategy staff in addition to students from UCL’s computer science department. The team will combine data analysis with machine-learning technology to develop new products.
So far, projects at the lab have explored predicting fraud in relation to claims, the likelihood of disputes going to trial or settlement, as well as potential litigation outcomes.
Wing said: ‘A large part of the value that law firms provide to their clients is the knowledge and expertise of their lawyers. As a global firm we have heaps of knowledge but the question we always challenge ourselves with is how we harness it as quickly and efficiently as we can for our clients. Having a data analytics lab provides us with another mechanism for unlocking insight, value and solutions for our clients.’
The data analytics lab launch caps off a productive year for Clydes in terms of tech innovation, with the firm launching Clyde Code in September, a consultancy focused on advising mainly insurers on smart contracts, blockchain and distributed ledger technologies.
It has also been an internationally expansive year for the firm, announcing yesterday (11 December), that it had established a best-friends association with five-partner New Zealand boutique insurance litigation firm Fee Langstone.
Over the past year, Clydes has opened offices in Chicago, Washington DC , Los Angeles and also formed an association with Malaysian firm Shaikh David & Co in Kuala Lumpur. A Bristol office is also slated to launch in the New Year.