Read Why We Invested in Agentech on our Medium page.
Authored by Susan Moring, Cortado Ventures General Partner
Agentic AI for efficient insurance claims processing
The past 18 months have marked an extraordinary surge in artificial intelligence innovation and adoption, reshaping industries across the globe. The global AI market has doubled in value since 2023, reaching approximately $391 billion in early 2025, and is projected to grow more than fivefold to $1.81 trillion by 2030[1]. Nearly 100 million people are now employed in the AI sector, and 83% of companies cite AI as a top priority in their business plans[2]. This rapid expansion is not just about scale — it’s about the emergence of new paradigms in how AI can reason, act, and drive value.
The AI boom has also dramatically reshaped the venture capital landscape. In the first quarter of 2025 alone, nearly 60% of global venture capital dollars — about $73 billion — were funneled into AI and machine learning startups, a staggering jump from just 28% a year earlier[3]. This surge is driven by both the fear of missing out and the unprecedented pace of technological advancement, with AI companies accounting for eight of the ten largest VC deals this year[4]. As a result, investors are increasingly focused on startups that harness AI to deliver industry-specific solutions and unique business value.
Agentic AI
At the heart of this new era is agentic AI, a transformative approach that goes beyond traditional automation or even generative AI. Agentic AI refers to systems capable of making autonomous decisions, executing multi-step strategies, and adapting to dynamic environments with minimal human oversight[5]. Unlike conventional AI, which typically performs narrowly defined tasks, agentic AI can interpret complex goals, reason through ambiguity, and take initiative — much like a skilled human collaborator.
What sets agentic AI apart is its ability to perceive, reason, act, and learn in a continuous loop. For example, in multimedia creation, an agentic AI could be tasked with producing a comprehensive report: it autonomously conducts research, generates text, selects images, and designs the final layout, coordinating multiple AI systems to deliver a polished product. In customer support, agentic AI chatbots not only answer user queries but also diagnose issues, recommend solutions, and escalate complex cases to human agents with all relevant context, saving time and improving user experience. In logistics, agentic AI systems optimize delivery routes in real time, predict supply chain bottlenecks, and adjust inventory levels based on shifting demand, ensuring efficiency and cost savings.
These examples highlight the transformative potential of agentic AI across industries — enabling smarter, more adaptive systems that free up human talent for higher-value work.
The pain point in insurance
Insurance companies today face mounting challenges with claims backlogs, which can result in delayed payouts, increased administrative costs, and frustration for both customers and staff. Within many types of insurance, it’s common for thousands of claims to accumulate due to manual processing bottlenecks, staffing shortages, and error-prone workflows — ultimately impacting cash flow and customer satisfaction. For example, pet insurance claims adjusters must create a “claim profile”, that involves sifting through dozens of pages from veterinary offices — some handwritten — to find relevant dates and diagnoses for each claim. These types of tedious, manual processes across the insurance industry can lead to a significant portion of claims remaining unresolved for months, creating operational inefficiencies and eroding trust.
Enter Agentech
Agentech addresses these pain points by deploying agentic AI technology purpose-built for insurance claims processing. Their platform orchestrates hundreds of specialized digital agents that automate repetitive and time-consuming tasks such as document review, data extraction, compliance checks, and claims triage. These agentic AI systems can independently interpret claim details, make decisions, and coordinate multi-step processes, drastically reducing manual workload and accelerating claims resolution times. By integrating directly with insurers’ existing claims management systems, Agentech’s technology streamlines operations without requiring major infrastructure changes. The result is a substantial reduction in claims backlogs, faster processing, improved accuracy, and a better experience for both adjusters and policyholders.
When we first met the Agentech team, we were impressed by how they’ve applied agentic AI to tackle efficiency challenges in the insurance industry. But beyond the strong market opportunity and scalable solution, what stood out the most was the team’s track record. In a still emerging tech ecosystem, it’s rare to find founders with proven experience building and successfully exiting companies. Agentech is led by two such leaders — Alex Pezold and Robin Roberson — who bring deep expertise in both technology and insurance, making them uniquely positioned to drive meaningful change in the industry. Robin previously founded WeGoLook, which was acquired by claims management solution provider Crawford & Company[7]. Alex previously founded TokenEx, an enterprise-grade data security platform that exited to private equity.
Cortado’s thesis around AI application-layer companies is that founder-market fit is incredibly important. In a world where software products are faster to build than ever, and thus markets like Insurtech are exceedingly crowded, founders with industry expertise, proprietary market access, and proven ability to execute are best positioned to win. Agentech’s founding team checks all of those boxes.
Conclusion
The AI-powered shift toward autonomy and adaptability is particularly transformative for the insurance industry, where complexity, regulation, and customer expectations are higher than ever. Agentech empowers insurers to streamline operations, accelerate claims processing, and deliver proactive, personalized service at scale. As we welcome Agentech to the Cortado Ventures portfolio, we’re excited to support a company at the forefront of this agentic AI revolution, poised to redefine what’s possible for insurers and their customers.
About Cortado Ventures
Cortado Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in ambitious, growth-driven companies, backing a new generation of economic prosperity for the Midcontinent region, defined as Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Missouri, Colorado, Kansas and New Mexico. As one of the largest VC funds in Oklahoma, Cortado’s focus is on tech companies bringing innovative solutions to the energy and logistics, life sciences, and the future of work sectors. For more information, visit cortado.ventures.
[1] https://www.hostinger.com/tutorials/ai-statistics
[2] https://explodingtopics.com/blog/ai-statistics
[3] https://cointelegraph.com/news/ai-60-percent-venture-capital-dollars-q1-2025-pitchbook
[4] https://cointelegraph.com/news/ai-60-percent-venture-capital-dollars-q1-2025-pitchbook
[5] https://www.salesforce.com/agentforce/what-is-agentic-ai/
[6] https://www.amitysolutions.com/blog/assistant-vs-agent-understanding-the-difference
[7] https://ir.crawco.com/news/news-details/2016/CRAWFORD–COMPANY-ACQUIRES-MAJORITY-INTEREST-IN-WEGOLOOK-LLC/default.aspx