Tech in Africa
South African insurtech Pineapple has taken part in several accelerator programmes in Hartford. The insurtech is planning to set up a Capital City office sometime this year where it will base its US operations. It is a welcome step for a city striving to become the next tech hub for startups. Pineapple’s peer-to-peer lending insurance app enables users to purchase insurance for their valuables that arent originally covered. For instance – electronics and bicycles.
Users can easily take a photo of the item they want to insure, input the cost and within a minute receive a calculated premium payment. All policies are underwritten by SA insurer Old Mutual Insure. Thus far the company employs 20 people and has raised $2 million since its founding.
Pineapple recently partnered with Travelers Cos prompting the necessity to open the Hartford office. The partnership involves Pineapple using Travelers Cos relying on Pineapple’s image recognition technology in the development of their new mobile app – Traverse.
According to Smith, he views their recent working with one of the major insurers and participation in the Hartford accelerator program as an unofficial welcome to the ecosystem. More on the achievements plans in the works, meetings with major insurers and co-founders statements can be read at Hartford Business Journal.
Source: HBJ
