Google has invested in insurance startups including Collective Health, Oscar, and Lemonade.
Google has signed off on at least 6 separate partnerships and investments in insurance tech in 2015, according to a CB Insights analysis of its activity. Most notably, Google launched its Google Compare service in March 2015 in partnership with CoverHound and Compare.com, allowing users to check rates from 21 different auto insurance providers. That ended unceremoniously less than a year later, when Google shut down its Compare service in February 2016.
As the table below illustrates, Google has made three different investments in the health benefits space through Google Ventures and Google Capital, and has partnered with homeowner insurance providers Liberty Mutual and American Family Insurance through its Nest product line. Its latest insurance-related venture investment went to homeowners and renters online insurance carrier Lemonade.
Here’s a look at Google’s recent moves in the insurance tech space.
| Company | Description | Date | Type / Total Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|
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Google’s GV participated in a $34M Series B to online homeowners and renters insurance carrier Lemonade, which is looking to expand to the California market. | Dec-16 | Investment // $34M |
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Collective Health provides an employer-sponsored health insurance platform. GV led a $81M funding round as Collective Health looks to expand nationwide beyond California in 2016. | Oct-15 | Investment // $81M |
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Google’s growth equity fund CapitalG made a $32.5M investment into New York-based health insurer Oscar Health at a $1.75B valuation. Oscar, which is focused on signing up individuals through online exchanges, was Google Capital’s first investment since Google’s announcement of Alphabet. | Sep-15 | Investment // $32.5M |
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CapitalG’s $60M investment in Gusto came five months prior to the company’s name change from ZenPayroll and its move into brokering health benefits. GV previously invested in ZenPayroll’s Series A round at a $100M valuation in February 2014. | Sep-15 | Investment // $60M |
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Google’s Nest partnered with American Family Insurance for a program that helps offset the costs of a Nest Protect smoke detector and offers a monthly discount on homeowner insurance. AmFam initiated its program with Nest in Minnesota. | Jun-15 | Partnership |
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Google’s Nest also partnered with Liberty Mutual to help offset the costs of a Nest Protect smoke detector and offer a monthly discount on homeowner insurance. Liberty Mutual has its program with Nest available in AL, CO, DE, IL, KY, ME, MN, PA, UT, and WI. | Jun-15 | Partnership |
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Google launched its Google Compare auto insurance-comparison engine in March with partners including CoverHound and Compare.com. Google Compare provides a simple form for users to compare auto insurance quotes from 21 providers for free by entering their information. Google Compare shut down in February 2016. | Mar-15 | Partnership |
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Google’s Niantic Labs partnered with insurance firm AXA to integrate the brand into Ingress, Google’s interactive “real world” mobile game. | Dec-14 | Partnership |
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Google partnered with Vision Service Plan to provide its users with subsidized, prescription pairs of Google Glass. Google stopped selling the then-current version of Glass in November 2014. | Jan-14 | Partnership |
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GV participated in a $50M round to Climate Corp, which provides an automated crop insurance program for farmers based on actual versus expected weather data. GV first invested in Climate Corp’s $42M Series B in February 2011. Climate Corp was acquired by Monsanto in 2013. | Jun-12 | Investment // $50M |
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