Toronto, ON (Jan. 29, 2026) \u2013 Manulife has introduced a redesigned electronic application and an enhanced version of its proprietary AI underwriting engine, MAUDE (Manulife Automated Underwriting Decision Engine). Together, these innovations enable automatic approvals in as little as two minutes for qualified applicants, helping Canadians access coverage faster and with less complexity.<\/p>\n
The enhanced application streamlines the process of applying coverage, and builds on Manulife\u2019s position as an AI market leader. Designed to support advisors as they guide clients through the questionnaire, its new intelligent features improve usability \u2013 helping MAUDE make faster decisions and enabling underwriters to review complex cases more efficiently.<\/p>\n
By accelerating access to protection, these improvements reinforce Manulife\u2019s mission to help Canadians live longer, healthier, better lives \u2013 supported by responsible, transparent, and customer-first AI.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince launching last fall, advisor adoption has been strong. By December, more than half of eligible cases \u2013 58 per cent \u2013 had approvals processed automatically through MAUDE, a 56 per cent increase from pre-launch,\u201d said Karen Cutler, Chief Underwriter, Manulife Canada. \u201cBy combining smarter questions with advanced AI, we\u2019re delivering a faster, more intuitive experience \u2013 without compromising on quality or protection.\u201d<\/p>\n
The new reflexive question format was designed to feel like a first conversation with a doctor, helping gather the right information quickly for accurate decisions. If an application cannot be approved automatically, it\u2019s seamlessly escalated to a human underwriter for review, ensuring every applicant receives personalized consideration.<\/p>\n
Key enhancements include:<\/p>\n
These enhancements are enabled by MAUDE and reflect Manulife\u2019s continued leadership in digital innovation. Originally introduced in 2018 as Artificial Intelligence Decision Algorithm (AIDA), the first AI tool in Canada to make automatic underwriting decisions, MAUDE has evolved into a more sophisticated engine that delivers faster, more efficient approvals.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been doing this longer than anyone in the industry, and that experience has allowed us to build one of Canada\u2019s most advanced AI underwriting engines,\u201d said Jodie Wallis, Global Chief AI Officer at Manulife. \u201cEvery enhancement is grounded in our Responsible AI Principles, so advisors and clients can feel confident that decisions are accurate and responsible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Manulife\u2019s Responsible AI Principles<\/a> guide every enhancement, ensuring fairness and trust.<\/p>\n Manulife was recently named the #1 life insurance company for AI maturity in the inaugural Evident AI Index for Insurance<\/a>, reinforcing the company\u2019s commitment to innovation and customer-centric solutions. For Canadians, the impact of this redesigned life insurance application is simple: faster access to coverage means families can be protected more quickly and with less stress.<\/p>\n Manulife has been actively investing in and scaling AI capabilities since 2016. In the past three years, the firm has significantly increased the value enabled through advanced analytics and AI by expanding its AI solutions portfolio and increasing efficiency through data and AI platform investments,\u2020<\/a><\/sup> all driven by the company\u2019s responsible AI framework. Manulife expects AI to generate $1 billion+ of enterprise value by 2027, with roughly one-fifth expected to come from improved efficiency.<\/p>\n To learn more about Manulife\u2019s AI progress, visit AI @ Manulife<\/a>.<\/p>\n Advisors can access demos and training resources for the redesigned electronic life insurance application on the Manulife Advisor Portal<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u2020<\/a><\/sup> The benefits from our global digital, customer leadership initiatives include expense saves, growth absorption, revenue benefits (margin businesses) and new business CSM growth (insurance).<\/p>\n Manulife Financial Corporation (TSX\/NYSE\/PSE: MFC, SEHK: 945)<\/em> is a leading international financial services provider, helping our customers make their decisions easier and lives better. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we operate as Manulife across Canada, Asia, and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States, providing financial advice and insurance for individuals, groups and businesses. Through Manulife Wealth & Asset Management, we offer global investment, financial advice, and retirement plan services to individuals, institutions, and retirement plan members worldwide. At the end of 2024, we had more than 37,000 employees, over 109,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving over 36 million customers. We trade as \u2018MFC\u2019 on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges, and under \u2018945\u2019 in Hong Kong. . For more information, visit www.manulife.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n Not all offerings are available in all jurisdictions. All figures in CAD unless otherwise stated.<\/p>\n SOURCE: Manulife Financial Corporation<\/em><\/p>\n Tags: Artificial Intelligence (AI)<\/a>, automation<\/a>, Manulife<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Faster access to life insurance coverage will help Canadian families get protected sooner Part of Manulife\u2019s market-leading AI capabilities to deliver innovative, customer-first solutions Toronto, ON (Jan. 29, 2026) \u2013 Manulife has introduced a...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[],"tags":[1],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24707"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24707"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24707\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24707"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24707"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24707"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Notes<\/h4>\n
About Manulife<\/b><\/h4>\n