Max Bruner, Founder and CEO of Anzen, joins Amir Bormand to break down why insurance is quietly one of the biggest data and workflow opportunities in tech right now. They dig into Max’s unconventional path from foreign policy to building an executive liability marketplace, and what it really takes to modernize a slow moving industry with AI.

If you care about building in real world markets, scaling with discipline, and using AI for more than content, this one will sharpen your thinking fast.

Key Takeaways

• Insurance is not flashy, but it is foundational, massive, profitable, and packed with repeatable workflows that software can improve

• The best tech opportunities are often in slow moving industries with lots of data and outdated systems

• Better decision making comes from predicting outcome impact and pressure testing your thinking with a strong community around you

• AI value is clearest when it drives real operations, faster transactions, lower costs, and better service

• Fundraising is a pipeline game now, treat it like sales, build the plan, hit the numbers, run a tight process

Timestamped Highlights

00:42 What Anzen actually does, a one stop marketplace for executive liability quotes across the US

02:29 From Arabic studies and foreign policy to discovering insurance through political risk

08:12 The curiosity engine, how deep research habits shaped his ability to build in new domains

11:23 Decision guardrails, learning from outcomes and using trusted people to keep you efficient

13:12 Why choose insurance, building in industries that make the world work, plus the profit reality

17:29 The startup advantage, modern infrastructure vs incumbent legacy systems, and why catching up takes time

20:36 Raising in today’s market, what changed, what worked, and why the pitch volume matters

A line worth stealing

“Sometimes in tech we miss the application, there are massive industries to go change if we apply technology in the right way.”

Max Bruner

Pro Tips for builders

• Pick markets with repeatable workflows, you can ship measurable value faster

• Spend your time where the outcome impact is high, skip low ROI rabbit holes

• Build a real financial plan before fundraising, then operate close to it

• Run fundraising like a sales process, pipeline, volume, and discipline win

Call to Action

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