Manulife has rolled out a redesigned digital life insurance application alongside an upgraded version of its artificial intelligence underwriting engine, enabling automatic approvals in as little as two minutes for eligible Canadian applicants.

At the center of the update is MAUDE — the Manulife Automated Underwriting Decision Engine — which works with the new electronic application to simplify the submission process for advisors and speed up decision-making. The company said the enhancements reduce complexity for applicants while allowing underwriters to focus on more intricate cases.

“Since launching last fall, advisor adoption has been strong. By December, more than half of eligible cases – 58 per cent – had approvals processed automatically through MAUDE, a 56 per cent increase from pre-launch,” said Karen Cutler, Chief Underwriter, Manulife Canada. “By combining smarter questions with advanced AI, we’re delivering a faster, more intuitive experience – without compromising on quality or protection.”

The updated application introduces a reflexive question format designed to resemble an initial conversation with a physician, helping gather relevant information quickly and accurately. When applications cannot be approved automatically, they are seamlessly escalated to human underwriters to ensure personalized review.

Key improvements include up to 40 per cent fewer medical questions, adaptive forms tailored to age and coverage amount, standardized pick lists for medications and conditions, and flexible workflows for cases requiring paramedical exams. Together, these changes aim to shorten completion times and improve data consistency.

“We’ve been doing this longer than anyone in the industry, and that experience has allowed us to build one of Canada’s most advanced AI underwriting engines,” said Jodie Wallis, Global Chief AI Officer at Manulife. “Every enhancement is grounded in our Responsible AI Principles, so advisors and clients can feel confident that decisions are accurate and responsible.”

Manulife has been scaling its AI capabilities since 2016 and expects artificial intelligence to generate more than $1 billion in enterprise value by 2027, with a significant share driven by operational efficiency gains.