Risk files that let insurers price cover for robots on factory floors
TL;DR Botinsure writes risk files on autonomous robots working in Indian plants and warehouses - where they run, how fast, how close to people and how often humans step in. Robot vendors and site operators pay for the file, and a licensed broker partner uses it to place cover.
Autonomous machines are already at work in India, just not on roads. India installed almost 10,500 industrial robots in 2025[1], and one Indian maker alone claims more than 4,500 robots deployed across 500+ warehouses[2]. Lots of them now move freely among people, and vendors increasingly rent them as a service, which leaves the vendor carrying the machine and a good chunk of the risk.
When a robot damages stock or injures a worker, liability can fall on the maker, the seller or the service provider under India's product liability rules[3]. Insurers have little loss history for these machines, so cover tends to get bundled into general policies with no credit for good practice.
I found no Indian product that prices it by where and how the robot runs.
What it does, in regulatory terms: risk assessment and data only. Botinsure does not sell or broker insurance itself. Placing cover is done by a partner registered with IRDAI as an insurance broker[4]. Get legal advice on where the line sits before you charge for anything.
For each site, Botinsure describes the robot's operating domain. That covers zones, speed caps, how often people share the aisle, lighting, floor quality and the number of safety stops and manual takeovers from the robot's own logs. It grades the site into tiers and writes a short file an underwriter can read in ten minutes. Logs get refreshed monthly, so a site that improves can move up a tier at renewal.
I've reframed the seed, which pitched tiered cover for driverless cars on roads. India has none to insure, since the Motor Vehicles Act allows only case-by-case research exemptions[5]. The operating-domain idea works best where the domain is a fenced factory floor anyway.
The robot vendor pays first, because under a rental model it often owns the risk and wants cheaper cover to protect its margin. Big site operators are a second buyer. Insurers don't pay for the file directly, but a broker partner earns brokerage on cover placed.
There's no public price for robot cover or risk surveys in India, so the fee per site has to be tested.
Robots are leaving their cages. Transport and logistics robots sold worldwide rose 21% in 2025, with rental models gaining ground[6]. The UK's Automated Vehicles Act 2024 put responsibility on the maker when the vehicle drives itself[7], and insurers everywhere are watching how that plays out. Indian vendors selling abroad will be asked the same questions sooner or later.
Nobody publishes a figure for robot or autonomous-machine insurance premiums in India, and I didn't find one for risk surveys either. The closest signal is the installed base - 10,500 industrial robots added in 2025 alone[1] and vendors claiming thousands of mobile robots in the field[2].
Treat that as a count of possible sites, not a premium pool.
Big insurance brokers already run risk surveys for factories, but they rate fire, machinery and property, not how a mobile robot behaves. Robot vendors keep detailed fleet logs[2], but they have no reason to share them with insurers in a neutral way.
I found no Indian firm turning robot telemetry into underwriting files.
| Difficulty | Moderate (45/100) |
| Starting capital | ₹60 L–1.2 Cr |
| Time to launch | 6–9 months |
The software is light, just a few log connectors and a scoring sheet. The hard parts are getting vendors to share raw logs, building enough claims history for insurers to trust the tiers and staying on the right side of the line between risk advice and insurance distribution.
Yes, this sits close to a regulated line. Arranging insurance needs an IRDAI licence, so you partner with a broker and stay on the data side.
Building this outside India? The categories above usually have a local equivalent, so check with your own regulator.
Don't let a model set the tier or price risk on its own. Insurers act on these files with real money, so a qualified person has to stand behind every grade.
Want to work out the AI layer for Botinsure? Talk to Yash →
Here's what can go south -
This fits a founder from insurance underwriting or industrial safety who can talk to both robot makers and insurers. If you want to launch a consumer insurance brand then this isn't the one.
Prove two things first - that one insurer will offer a lower rate for a top-tier site, and that one vendor will pay for files on its whole fleet.
Plan for roughly ₹60 L–1.2 Cr, mostly on analysts, log integrations with robot vendors and legal advice on the broker line.
If you arrange insurance, yes, an IRDAI broker registration. Selling risk data alone may not need one, but get a written legal view, and place cover through a registered broker.
Yes, insurers everywhere struggle to price robot fleets. Insurance distribution is licensed in most countries, so check where data ends and broking begins.
The free Botinsure validation kit has the line-by-line capital breakdown, the effort scoring, the IRDAI and liability checklist, a 14-day validation sprint with pass/fail targets, a 90-day launch plan, 10 interview questions for robot vendors and underwriters, and 5 assumptions to test. Download the kit →
Thinking about building Botinsure or something close to it? The make-or-break work is getting one insurer to price off your tiers and structuring the broker partnership cleanly, and I'm happy to help you map out both. If you need a hand, you know where to find me. Talk to Yash →
For illustration only. Names are fictional and ideas hypothetical; sourced facts are real but may be out of date. Nothing here is legal, financial or professional advice, and Yash Khatri is not personally liable for any use of it. Read the full disclaimer.