Biba 2026: Evolving AI capabilities present both cyber risks and opportunities

Rapidly evolving artificial intelligence (AI)-driven developments in the digital security sector are amplifying the capabilities of both cyber attackers and defenders.

This is according to Sam Franks, country manager for the UK and Ireland at Beazley, who also said that by offering a combination of proactive protection and tailored cover, cyber insurers have the necessary tools to derisk the next generation of digital assets.

Franks sat down with Insurance Times at the 2026 Biba Conference to discuss the evolution of the cyber sector.

“We’re obviously looking very carefully and closely at the trends that are emerging. Our team sees that AI development will support defence. However, unfortunately, the opportunity is very much there with the attackers,” Franks explained.

“As an attacker, you only have to win once and you’ve got an opportunity, where as a defender you have to win every single time.”

In response to the growing threat opportunities, Franks said that Beazley is looking very closely at how it keeps adapting its full spectrum cyber proposition to meet client needs.

One of the insurer’s approaches is to minimise the likelihood of clients submitting a claim in the first place.

“A big part of our proposition is about supporting businesses to be prepared for risk. It’s about the pre-emptive service we can give,” he said.

“On the cyber side, we do a security posture report, which helps the client get an independent external view of their domain to see what their vulnerabilities will be and how they might go about fixing it.”

Uninsured opportunity

For small firms, good cyber hygiene might involve phishing attack simulations and cyber security training. For larger organisations, constant domain scanning can ensure vulnerabilities are closed before a threat is enacted.

Ultimately, despite the high cyber risk levels, many firms remain underinsured or uninsured. While penetration levels are improving, Franks felt there was still room for improvement.

He concluded: “It’s definitely improving, at the same time there remains a significant uninsured opportunity out there.

“We see good client growth – in our SME book, for example, we had something like a 15% policy growth last year, which is perfectly respectable.

“At the same time, we’d love to support our brokers more and more to help that accelerate, because there’s still a – let’s say 80% – uninsured opportunity out there.”