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Tech Topics In This Article: Atlanta startups, InsurTech
One of the players in Atlanta’s InsurTech startup scene wants to put life back into the life insurance industry.
Kaleido Life, being built under the helm of CEO and co-founder Craig Du Bruyn (seen in featured photo), has set out to disrupt the century-old model of life insurance. Traditionally, life insurance has operated on the concept that financial protection is given to beneficiaries upon the policyholder’s death.
“The [life insurance] model hasn’t evolved for over 100 years. You buy a policy, pay for life, and only benefit in death,” Du Bruyn told Hypepotamus. “We set out to flip that model — to make life insurance serve the living.”
The disconnect between premiums paid and tangible living benefits is the core problem Kaleido is determined to solve. Kaleido’s model works by turning traditional policies into immediate liquidity with the startup’s signature cash-upfront policy. Users can get paid out a percentage of their life insurance policy early (as in, before death), to fund different life events.
“We say that “our product is the bridge between people’s dreams and their reality. Life insurance is just how we deliver it,” Du Bruyn added.
The startup is targeting demographics that have historically not engaged with the life insurance space. That includes the underinsured, the uninsured, Gen Xers, Millennials, entrepreneurs, creators, [and] digital nomads as their early target customers. As Du Bruyn sees it, such groups of people typically don’t see immediate value in paying for traditional life insurance since they are looking for financial tools that more align with their current life goals.
“We’re not looking for people that are looking for life insurance. We’re looking for people that are wanting to fund life events,” he added.
Users can join Kaleido’s wait list now.
Building any FinTech or InsurTech startup is bound to bump into legal and regulatory hurdles. Du Bruyn said that getting Kaleido off the ground required figuring out how to “not [trigger] any unintended tax or regulatory or compliance consequences.”
“It is a delicate dance, and so we’ve had to navigate that state by state,” he added.
Du Bruyn, a South African living in Atlanta, said he’s been impressed with the city’s “spirit and resilience” as he’s learned more about Atlanta’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The city has long been home to strong InsurTech startups. Venture-backed startups in the industry include Layr, Mile Auto, and PlanGap.