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Employers turn to AI as workers struggle to choose benefits
A Hartford study found 43% of US workers are unsure they pick the right benefits during enrollment, and 17% used AI last enrollment to help decide.
Employers are increasingly using AI to help close the gap between the benefits they offer and what employees say they actually need, according to commentary from Marsh Health and Benefits at an industry event covered by Insurance Business.
The Hartford 2026 Future of Benefits Study cited in the piece found 43% of US workers are never sure they are choosing the right benefits during enrollment, while 17% said they used AI to help with benefits decisions during their most recent open enrollment. More than half of those AI users were in the Gen Z cohort.
Insurance Business reports that the uncertainty is not new, but the challenge is shifting as employers try to keep up with rising expectations for healthcare coverage after pandemic-era disruptions. Marsh Health and Benefits’ leaders argued that the issue is less about lack of product options and more about data and delivery, saying benefits often do not reach the right people.
The article says traditional benefits design typically groups employees by broad demographics, such as age band and family status, but variation within those categories can be large. Marsh also framed the AI opportunity as personalization based on employee context, noting examples like offering alternatives when a standard option, such as a gym, is not available, and it raised an equity point that some groups are more likely to access care remotely.