Buzz round: Dubai World Insurance Congress 2018 speaker Dr Jeevan Perera

Perera is a senior engineer at NASA, Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. He has been with NASA for over 28 years and is currently working on advanced countermeasure systems to mitigate human health risks for future exploration missions. He has been the risk manager for several key manned space programs including the International Space Station, Orion Spacecraft and others.

In his previous position within Orion – NASA’s manned spacecraft designed to further explore our solar system – the shared associated responsibility for the day-to-day management of the Orion Project’s business and project planning roles including overall management and assessment of project budgets, procurement, contracts and assessment functions (including risk management), configuration management, information technology, schedules, and the development of management plans and processes.

Perera answers our buzz round three questions and talks AI and NASA risk management.

What will be the key themes for your keynote at this year’s DWIC?

During my keynote, I will be giving an overview of NASA’s risk management assessment tools, its processes and its techniques, and lessons learned from our implementation efforts. There is direct applicability of these methodologies to the insurance industry in managing and mitigating your risks.

How are digital advances impacting the realms of possibility when it comes to space – both in relation to travel and how we live our lives on earth?

With regard to digital advances that are impacting the realms of possibility for space, there has been vast growth in potential of artificial intelligence (AI) systems for both terrestrial and space-based needs, including in the area of personal assistants. These systems could aid in managing our daily activities, including monitoring and supporting personal health improvements.

What do these advances mean for the (re)insurance industry? What opportunities do they present?

AI systems will probably increase the meaning and relevance of the vast amounts of accumulated data that exponentially grows, and there will also be data mining advancements. The large explosion of sensor technology will also improve the effectivity of these AI systems.

Dr Jeevan Perera will be speaking at Dubai World Insurance Congress (DWIC) 2018, taking place 27 – 28 February. Click here to find out more and register.