Imagine if your group life insurance adapted in real time, rewarding your morning runs and flagging potential health risks before they arise. What once might have been the figment of a science fiction writer’s imagination could soon become our new reality, thanks to the growing role of connected devices in insurance.Connected devices are quietly transforming the group insurance industry. From fitness trackers and smart rings to workplace telehealth tools and personalised AI, insurers can now use real-time data to better understand risk, intervene earlier, and deliver more value to their customers.It’s a pivotal moment for all involved, and YuLife CTO Josh Hart describes this shift as a fundamental reimagining of what insurance can be. "Most people only think about insurance when something bad happens,” he explains. “It's a product built around worst-case scenarios. But connected devices flip that logic. They let insurance become a tool for living better, not just protecting against the worst.“Devices provide an opportunity to gain more insight over the lifetime of a policy and can help individuals prevent potential claims and reduce the risk of premiums increasing.”Below, we explore how connected devices are changing insurance and what that means for insurers, employees, employers, and the future of wellbeing.What are connected devices in insurance, and why do they matter?A connected device in insurance is any piece of tech that collects and transmits data about your behaviour or health. Think smartwatches, step counters, heart rate monitors, sleep trackers, even smart bathroom scales.For insurers, these tools unlock more than just numbers. They provide daily insights into how people live, helping flag risks early, personalise cover, and even reduce the likelihood of a claim.To highlight the significance of this, Josh draws a useful parallel with flood insurance. In the past, policies paid out only after the damage was done. But now, some require leak sensors to be installed in a customer’s plumbing. These devices can detect issues early, preventing major damage and reducing claims. Health insurance, Josh suggests, can evolve along a similar model, where connected devices can help insurers and individuals identify risks sooner and take action before they escalate.A shift in how policies are priced, sold and renewedAs health data from connected devices becomes more accessible, some of the admin-heavy processes of insurance, like health questionnaires, may disappear.“The amount of boring questions I have to answer when opening a policy will be reduced because my Garmin watch might autofill my policy,” Josh explains. “We're not removing these questions; we're just transferring where that data lives.”He sees connected data making policy onboarding faster, risk assessment more accurate, and pricing more responsive to real-life behaviours. Regulatory change will follow, but gradually.Josh compares this evolution to the rise of Uber. "When Uber made it possible to hail a private hire vehicle from the side of the road, they were technically breaking regulations," he explains. "Insurance will likely have a similar journey. Not a revolution, but an evolution."Josh also notes that the continuous stream of data from wearables and smart devices allows insurers to assess risk across the lifetime of a policy rather than just at the point of sale. That creates an opportunity not just to price more accurately, but to dynamically update reserve capital requirements and claims models in response to real-world health behaviours.“Traditionally, insurers have had to rely on historical data and actuarial models to make pricing decisions,” Josh points out. “But now we can monitor behaviours in real time and use that to offer fairer, more personalised pricing.”This doesn’t just benefit individuals; it could also lead to greater efficiency across the industry. “If you can price more accurately, you can compete more effectively. You may write slightly less premium, but you’ll grow your customer base by being better and faster.”Josh sees this as a competitive advantage for those who are able to innovate quickly and meet regulatory requirements. “It’s a very competitive market. The opportunity is there for insurers who can become more efficient, more responsive, and more transparent about how they’re using this data.”The ethical dilemma: who benefits from your data?There’s a fine line between using data from connected devices in insurance to reward positive behaviours and penalising people for circumstances outside their control.“We don’t want to live in a world where someone can’t get insurance because they’ve shared their data,” Josh says. “The goal should be to make insurance more efficient and fairer for the individual.”That means collecting only what’s necessary, clearly communicating why it's needed, and ensuring the data is handled securely. Transparency is key to all this. Users must know what they're sharing, how it's being used, and how it will benefit them.Josh acknowledges that many people are wary of how insurers might use personal data, especially when it comes to health. "We live in a highly regulated environment for a reason," he says. "This kind of health data is sensitive, personally identifiable, and private. So it has to be managed with great care."But he also believes the opportunity outweighs the risk. "If we do this well, we can build a better model of insurance," he explains. "One that doesn’t just react when people are ill, but helps them avoid getting ill in the first place. That’s good for the insurer and for the insured."And it reflects a generational shift. "I’m a millennial," Josh says. "We’re more comfortable sharing data when we get something useful in return. The trade-off can be worth it, as long as it’s done with integrity."From individual prevention to organisational value: the ripple effect of connected devicesSouth Africa is among the world leaders of mortality rates from conditions considered preventable or treatable. While, on one hand, that is depressing to read, the silver lining is that preventable disease is where connected devices in insurance can really shine.YuLife combines behavioural science, gamification and connected devices via our employee app to motivate users to walk more, sleep better, and stay on top of their mental health. And all the data says the model works.“People who buy a device materially change their behaviour,” says Josh. YuLife data shows a clear link between purchasing a discounted device through the platform and an uptick in healthy behaviours.For insurers, this creates an opportunity to mitigate claims before they arise. Fewer claims mean less strain on reserves, more accurate pricing models, and more stable portfolios. “If we know someone is improving their health behaviours in real time, we don’t need to carry as much capital against their policy,” Josh explains. “It allows us to run the business more efficiently.”What this means for insurers and employersGroup insurance policies can benefit too, especially when employers actively promote health engagement. Connected wellbeing tools such as the YuLife app give companies more control over rising insurance costs and enable earlier intervention for issues like stress and burnout.Josh likens it to preventative dentistry: “Get your tooth checked before you need the root canal.” In the workplace, that might mean encouraging employees to take a Cognitive Behavioural Therapy course before chronic stress leads to long-term sick leave.Employers who invest in proactive, connected care stand to benefit from lower premiums, reduced absenteeism, and improved productivity. And for employees, the outcome is a more supportive, responsive environment for wellbeing.This is the new model of insurance YuLife is building: not a safety net you reach for in a crisis, but a system of everyday support. It’s good for people, good for business, and good for the insurers who power it.Personalised, adaptive policies: are we ready?In theory, real-time data makes it possible to offer dynamic insurance policies that adjust daily to a user’s behaviour, as we cited at the beginning of this article.But Josh ultimately has some concerns. “Nobody wants to pay for risk they don’t have. But people also want to know their exposure is fixed.” If premiums rise and fall every week, customers may lose trust in their cover.“People want to know where they stand,” he explains. “A policy that constantly changes its price might technically be more accurate, but it's also more unpredictable. That unpredictability erodes the very thing insurance is supposed to offer: peace of mind.”Josh believes a more stable model will ultimately prevail, one that balances innovation with simplicity. “There’s definitely scope for dynamic pricing at the group level. If a company’s workforce is improving its overall health profile, there’s a strong argument for adjusting premiums or reinsurance costs. But at the individual level, constant change might backfire.”He shares a hypothetical scenario: “Say your car insurance renews daily. One day it rains, and your premium spikes. The next day, you have more passengers in the car, and it spikes again. That might be mathematically sound, but it’s not user-friendly.”Instead, Josh envisions adaptive insurance models that use data behind the scenes to calibrate risk more precisely, but present customers with stability and rewards.“It should never be about punishing you when your data looks worse, but rather recognising and rewarding your improvements over time. That’s where we see the biggest opportunity.”Looking ahead: the future of connected devices in insuranceFor Josh, the key to all of this is engagement. “Most insurance companies focus on the core utility of insurance. But it’s a lifetime relationship, and it needs to provide value every day.“We live in a world where the services we use, such as our banks, our fitness apps, our entertainment platforms, all give us something every day. Insurance should too.”YuLife was designed with this in mind. Our gamified app and reward system encourage daily interaction, creating a user base that actually wants to engage with their insurance provider.“When we designed YuLife, our intent was to build something worthy of five minutes of your life each day,” Josh says. “That provides a foundation for all the science we can layer on later.”This is a distinct advantage. "Most people don't want to hang out with their insurer," says Josh. "But with YuLife, they do."Connected devices aren’t just changing how insurance is priced. They’re changing how it’s experienced, making it more engaging, more preventative, and more human.