{
  "id": 17045279,
  "title": "Former UK government minister Afolami raises £5M for AI insurance broker startup",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/29/former-uk-government-minister-afolami-raises-5m-for-ai-insurance",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-10-29T10:21:54.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Tech.eu",
    "slug": "tech-eu",
    "url": "https://tech.eu/2026/10/29/former-uk-government-minister-afolami-raises-ps5m-for-ai-insurance-broker-startup/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Former UK government minister Bim Afolami has launched an AI insurance startup, i23, alongside co-founder Anand Sambasivan. The new venture, which has reportedly raised nearly £5m in seed funding, aims to revolutionize the insurance broker market with an AI-native operating model. Sambasivan expressed excitement about the fast-paced development, stating that it feels great to be part of a vibrant early-stage startup ecosystem in London. The UK insurance broker market, valued at up to £22bn annually, is currently highly fragmented, presenting an opportunity for i23 to streamline administrative processes. Investors in the startup include Four Cities Capital, Outward VC, Seedcamp, and Insiders Ventures. The founding team also includes Mike Coombes, former COO of PrimaryBid, and Salman Valibeik, co-founder of marketing startup Opriva. PrimaryBid was acquired by US fintech giant SoFi last year.",
  "summary": "A former UK government minister has launched an AI insurance startup, his co-founder has confirmed, which has reportedly raised nearly £5m in seed funding.Bim Afolami, who served as the UK’s economic ...",
  "key_points": [
    "Bim Afolami launches AI insurance startup i23",
    "£5M seed funding raised for i23 venture",
    "Investors include Four Cities Capital and Outward VC"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The entry of an AI-native operating model into the fragmented insurance broker market signals a shift toward automated administrative processes for a sector valued at billions annually.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}