VIG Vienna Board Update: Climate Risk and Life Insurance Reserves

Hello dear readers,

This week I’ve visited Vienna to present at the board meeting of Vienna Insurance Group as part of our work in the IE Insurance and Tech Lab.

This meeting was an important step in a longer journey: from the launch of the lab in July 2025, to the January 2026 steering committee, and now to a board-level review of the first year of results.

The challenge was clear: defend the technical side of the project with full rigor, while keeping the message accessible and engaging for a general audience.

Our project this year studied how climate change, especially temperature, affects mortality risk and, in turn, life insurance reserves. I presented the methodology, the main results, and the practical implications for risk and reserving decisions, with a strong focus on clarity for non-technical stakeholders.

I am happy to share that the session went very well. The board was highly engaged, the discussion was constructive, and yes, there were even a few laughs during the presentation.

The most important outcome is that they approved extending the project for one more year.

This result reflects a true team effort across IE University and Vienna Insurance Group. I am especially grateful to my colleagues and mentors at IE, and to the VIG board for the trust, the sharp questions, and the openness during the discussion.

In the next phase, we will expand the analysis beyond temperature to include air quality and mental health, two critical dimensions for long-term life and health risk assessment.

Moments like this remind me why I care so much about applied research: translating complex models into decisions that people can trust, and doing it through close collaboration between academia and industry.

All the best,

Daniel Precioso