This session was led by Philip Krim, chief executive of Montauk Capital and co-founder of Casper,
alongside Mike Gulla, CEO of Adaptive Insurance and Sydney Robinson, senior manager, new products innovation & analytics at Tokio Marine. The discussion focuses on how corporates and venture studios can jointly build new businesses, illustrated through the creation of Adaptive Insurance with Tokio Marine HCC.

  • Venture studios can act as a bridge between corporates and startups, helping reconcile
    differences in tempo, language and operating style to unlock faster, more impactful outcomes.
  • A structured co-building model begins with identifying “white space” opportunities,
    validating them through research and expert input, and only then forming a company with
    the right partners.
  • The Adaptive Insurance case highlights how a clear thesis (rising power outages and increasing extreme weather events) can translate into a new product category, supported by data, technology and insurance capacity.
  • Corporate partners provide critical advantages beyond capital, including underwriting
    expertise, distribution, pricing capabilities and brand credibility, accelerating time to market.
  • Successful partnerships depend on having a strong internal “connector” within the corporate
    to navigate the organisation and secure resources and buy-in.
  • Key decision criteria for corporates include strategic fit, availability of in-house distribution, whether it can be incubated internally, and long-term relevance rather than one-off opportunities.
  • Top-down alignment and clearly defined processes are essential to move quickly and avoid
    organisational friction.
  • For startups, the value of a corporate partner lies in ecosystem access: relationships, data,
    and the ability to co-develop future products, not just immediate funding.
  • The shift in venture markets from growth-at-all-costs to profitability is shaping
    collaboration: both corporates and startups prioritise sustainable, disciplined expansion.
  • Overall, co-building works best when both sides are tightly aligned on long-term strategic
    goals, with complementary capabilities clearly delineated from the outset.

This summary was generated by AI and lightly edited by GCV staff.