The AI Race Moved to the Construction Site | Justin Levine, Shepherd

Everyone talks about the AI boom in terms of compute, models, and software. Justin Levine spends his days thinking about something different: who insures the actual construction of the data centers, energy assets, and projects that make all of it possible.The AI race moved from the cloud to the construction site. And the construction site has an insurance problem.In Episode 162 of InsurTechTalk, Shepherd Co-Founder & CEO Justin Levine — civil engineer turned construction risk manager turned InsurTech founder — explains how his company is building the first behavior-based commercial underwriting platform, why the Coalition-Allianz deal is a seminal moment for the MGU model, and how Shepherd Savings is rewarding contractors for technology they already use with up to 25% lower premiums.In this episode:- Why the construction insurance problem is speed and data, not capacity — and why that distinction matters- How Shepherd delivers underwriting indications in minutes by integrating with Procore, Autodesk, DroneDeploy, and OpenSpace- The personal auto telematics parallel: why commercial construction is 20 years behind on behavior-based pricing — and what happens when it catches up- Shepherd Savings: how rewarding existing technology adoption solves the change management problem that killed wearables in workers comp- Why data centers are actually a minority of Shepherd's $400B+ insured portfolio- The seven archetypes of data center construction — and why one size fits none of them- The Coalition-Allianz deal: the first proof point that technology-native MGUs can outperform legacy carrier underwriting- Closed-loop data center developments — power, compute, water, storage — and the new complexity they create for construction insurers- What is next for Shepherd: new programs, new verticals, and announcements expected in Q3🔗 Learn more about Shepherd: https://www.shepherdinsurance.com/🔗 Connect with Justin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justindlevine29/InsurTechTalk is the podcast for insurance professionals, InsurTech founders, and anyone who wants a no-BS look at where the industry is headed.🔔 Subscribe for new episodes every week.