OnStar Insurance, Head of Technology: AI and ML are like the internet in the ‘90s

Lenin Sadineni, Head of Technology — OnStar Insurance, GM Financial, speaks to Robert Lutton, Vice President, Sandhill Consultants about his approach to technology, management, and nurturing talent.

Sadineni describes GM as a technology, data, and mobility company. He mentions the company’s vision as ‘triple zero,’ meaning zero crashes, zero congestion, and zero emissions. GM produces close to 7 million vehicles across the world with the help of a 155,000-strong workforce.

GM launched its insurance business recently and has plans to rake in $6 billion in revenue by 2030. The company has expanded OnStar to 42 states, so far within a year.

“We are focused on product development organization, which we call ‘software-enabled services.’ We are working hard to add a telematics component into the product mix. Going forward, we want to create a product that is truly meaningful for our customers. We want to offer insurance premiums that will be based on customers’ driving behavior,” Sadineni says.

He explains that traditional insurance has four boxes they check: Who are you? What do you drive? How do you drive? And, where do you drive?' “We just want to make sure we truly charge premiums based on our customers’ driving behavior,” he adds.

Speaking on the way forward for AI/ML technology, Sadineni says, “AI and ML are like the internet in the 1990s. These technologies are going to impact every industry. We're already seeing plenty of use cases today, such as virtual assistance, self-driving cars, disease mapping, automatic financial investing, manufacturing robots.”

One AI/ML use case GM is exploring today is post-accident assistance. 

“The moment there is an impact, we want to automate the entire process. Our sensors will pick it up. We'll file the claim on your behalf. We will make the calls for the cops, ambulance, and then we'll get to the rental car. We will order the parts from the nearest dealership at the moment. We are trying to do all the stuff with the help of AI/ML,” Sadineni says.

He further sheds light on the importance of nurturing talent and mentions two things. First, leading employee advocacy, and second, autonomy and faster career development.

“Creating your culture around your talent is as equal as creating a solution around your customers. Nobody's going to stick with the company more than three to five years. The tenure is lesser with millennials. So, listen to them and let them lead the change. We need to promote,  not on the number of years in the role but truly identifying the potential,” he adds.

He then puts forth a three-point agenda for career growth. “Number one, surround yourself with mentors and have multiple mentors. Second, have your personal board of directors. Last, read a lot of biographies. When you have multiple mentors, you can have the collective power and you can have the best out of them. Make all those mentors your personal board of directors, ask them for suggestions, and craft your career accordingly. And when you read a lot of autobiographies, you will be learning over two weeks what the person who wrote them learned and gained in their lifetime.”

Speaking on the challenges of the insurance automotive business, he mentions the ever-changing customer needs and the competition with startups. “Be ready for change always. Try creating a workforce that's always ready for change. Customer behaviors, customer preferences — we used to see those changes once in three, four years. Now you will get that every quarter. Take the feedback, change continuously.” And finally, compete with startups and stay ahead of the game, he concludes.