ERGO vs Oscar

Trade Republic Found Own Life Insurer for Retirement

Trade Republic, the Berlin-based neobroker, has established its own life insurer, Justinian Versicherungs AG, in Vaduz, Liechtenstein, after receiving a license from the local regulator FMA. The license covers traditional and unit-linked life insurance. This strategic move enables Trade Republic to offer a guaranteed version of the upcoming state-subsidized retirement savings account (Altersvorsorgedepot) in Germany, which will replace the Riester pension from 2027. The guaranteed version may incur a fee, unlike previously announced free variants. This expansion positions Trade Republic against traditional insurers like Allianz and Ergo, targeting security-conscious savers, while rival Scalable Capital avoids guarantees. Trade Republic reported €754 million in revenue for its 2024/25 fiscal year and a valuation of €12.5 billion, serving over 10 million customers.

• Trade Republic founded Justinian Versicherungs AG in Vaduz, Liechtenstein, and received a life insurance license from the FMA, covering traditional and unit-linked life insurance.
• The insurer enables Trade Republic to potentially offer a guaranteed version of the Altersvorsorgedepot, with returns of at least 80-100% of contributions, though it may carry a fee.
• The Altersvorsorgedepot is scheduled to launch in early 2027 as the successor to the Riester pension.

Zalando and ERGO Transform Video Production with Google AI

At the YouTube Festival 2026, Lounge by Zalando and ERGO showcased how they leverage Google AI to revolutionize video production. Lounge by Zalando halved its production time for the Black Friday 2025 campaign using Veo 3 and Imagen 3, reducing it from three months to 1.5 months. ERGO is piloting an 'Agentic Gen AI Marketing Engine' with Deloitte and Google, which automates the creation of localized YouTube video ads from simple inputs. The engine generates up to 50 assets per month, a 20-fold increase, and cuts production time from weeks to days. Both companies emphasize maintaining brand identity and human oversight. YouTube's higher ROI compared to linear TV (90%) and paid social (70%) drives budget shifts, according to studies by Ekimetrics and Nielsen.

• Lounge by Zalando reduced campaign production time from 3 months to 1.5 months using Google AI (Veo 3, Imagen 3).
• ERGO is piloting an 'Agentic Gen AI Marketing Engine' with Deloitte and Google to automate YouTube video creation.
• The ERGO engine can produce up to 50 video assets per month, a 20-fold increase from current levels.

Gerd Gigerenzer on Risk Literacy, AI and Intuition

The article features an interview with decision scientist Gerd Gigerenzer, focusing on his upcoming keynote on risk literacy at the Direct! by Post Advertising conference. Gigerenzer discusses the distinction between calculable risks and uncertainty, the importance of intuition and heuristics for expert decision-making, and criticizes defensive decision-making in large organizations. He highlights the dangers of algorithmic decision-making and the role of media in distorting risk perception. He also expresses concern about the lack of improvement in societal risk literacy, branding social media business models as a threat to an enlightened society. The interview touches on his 'Unstatistik' project and his research on risk literacy in Germany.

• Gerd Gigerenzer will give a keynote on risk literacy at the 'Direct! by Post Advertising' conference in Zurich on September 10.
• Gigerenzer directs the Harding Center for Risk Literacy at the University of Potsdam and is emeritus director at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development.
• The interview mentions his critique of Elon Musk's 2025 statement on asylum seekers, which he says was a misrepresentation of facts.

The making of a brand: Oscar Health redesigns its family of brands around individual choice

CMO Kristen Prestano explains how Oscar Health’s new business model connects insurance, healthcare shopping and technology through one consumer promise.

10-Q Financial Filing Analysis for Oscar (2026-08-07)

Oscar Health, Inc. reported substantial revenue growth and a return to profitability for the second quarter of 2026 ended June 30, 2026. Total revenue reached $4.88 billion for Q2 2026, up 70.4% from $2.86 billion in Q2 2025, driven by strong membership growth to approximately 3.0 million effectuated members (a 46% year-over-year increase) and disciplined rate increases. Operating performance improved significantly, posting operating income of $388.6 million and net income attributable to Oscar Health of $361.8 million, compared to an operating loss of $230.5 million and a net loss of $228.4 million in the prior-year period. The Medical Loss Ratio (MLR) improved markedly to 79.2% from 91.1% in Q2 2025, supported by disciplined pricing and favorable prior-period reserve developments. The company also maintained strong liquidity, with $4.08 billion in cash and cash equivalents, expanded short-term investments, and an undrawn $475.0 million revolving credit facility.

• Q2 2026 total revenue increased 70.4% YoY to $4.88 billion, with net income attributable to Oscar reaching $361.8 million ($1.10 diluted EPS).
• Medical Loss Ratio (MLR) improved 1,190 basis points YoY to 79.2% for Q2 2026, while the SG&A expense ratio declined to 14.2% from 18.7%.
• Total effectuated membership expanded 46% YoY to 2,963,002 members as of June 30, 2026.

Oscar Health is building the new consumer health economy

At Investor Day, Oscar Health raised its 2026 earnings outlook and outlined how its ACA leadership, CHOICE adoption, Lucie and AI advantage will support durable, profitable growth.