Why AI in broking needs a rethink

Williams founded Deloitte Digital and has spent more than 30 years at the forefront of digital transformation in Australia, including currently serving as chief edge officer at Deloitte’s Centre for the Edge Australia and chairman of Deloitte Australia’s Innovation Council.

Speaking ahead of his upcoming keynote at this year’s Broker Innovation Summit, Williams said many brokers are still approaching artificial intelligence as a productivity tool, rather than a collaborative system capable of improving judgement, workflow, and client communication.

From AI search to AI dialogue

While many brokers are already experimenting with tools such as ChatGPT, Copilot, and Gemini, Williams said most users are still limiting the value they get from the technology by treating it like a search engine rather than a thinking partner.

“What I see a lot of people doing is they’re sort of using AI as, ‘I will put in a prompt and get an answer,’” he said.

“For the AI to give you a better answer, how about getting it to ask you questions?”

Williams said one of the biggest misconceptions around AI is that it removes the need for expertise, when in reality, the opposite is true.

While adoption across the broking industry continues to accelerate, he said the real value of AI is unlocked when users bring their own insight, context, and critical thinking into the conversation.

“For a lot of professionals, you have a lot of insight within you. If you can use AI right, it will ask you good questions and then suddenly people realise, ‘Wow, it’s made me think,’” he said.

“And the more you put in, the better the output.”

Williams said this conversational approach represented one of the biggest shifts in how brokers should think about AI tools.

“That conversational style is what’s really going to bring it out,” he said.

“My prompts or sessions go for 20 minutes, not just ‘pizza near me.’”

Context is key

Williams said the real gains from AI go far beyond simple productivity improvements, noting the technology is only as effective as the expertise and judgement behind it.

“The most important thing in effective use of AI is context,” he said.

“Do I understand the context?” Do I understand the principles of accounting or law or indeed broking enough to be able to use AI effectively?

“If I don’t know the right questions to ask, if I don’t know the full nuance, I might be able to get to a point in the answer, but I’m not going to understand enough.

“That’s a risk, but also a strength for people who can leverage their expertise.”

Williams warned the biggest risks associated with AI adoption were not necessarily the technology itself – but how users approach it.

“I say the two biggest risks of AI are laziness and ignorance,” he said.

“If you’re lazy with it and you let it do all your work for you and you say this is more or less good enough, you’re up for a real problem.

“And using it in a context where you don’t have a basic understanding of the context is also dangerous because you don’t know what good looks like.

“You don’t know the questions that weren’t asked.”

At the same time, Williams said the most advanced AI users are increasingly treating the technology as a strategic thinking partner rather than a simple automation tool.

“I’m seeing the top AI people, the really advanced ones, what I call the sort of top guns, they’re almost embodied in AI,” he said.

“They’re using AI to, ‘Hey, I’m thinking this, this, this. You red team it. Drive a truck through my thinking here. I’ve drafted this. Act as a 30-year veteran lawyer, deeply sceptical and a litigation expert. Tell me how you’d attack that.’

“So you’re using it in an active thinking contextual way.”

Governance and ‘shadow AI’

Williams also warned brokerages needed to move quickly to establish stronger governance frameworks around AI use, particularly as staff increasingly adopt tools independently.

“The first rule is: what are your guidelines?” he said.

“Have you put your guidelines down? Have you trained your staff in what to do and what not to do? A lot of organisations are exposed because they fail to create an AI policy.

“So before you start to embark on regulating it, first accept that people are already using it.

“And if they’re using tools that aren’t approved, probably it’s because you haven’t provided them tools that are approved in your safe environment.”

He added that many of the strongest AI innovators inside businesses are often experimenting outside official company structures and urged executives to look internally for innovation.

“The best stuff that I see happening is the stuff people are doing at home,” Williams said.

“The top experimenters and innovators are doing amazing stuff on their own machines.

“If you’ve got 10–20 people, chances are you’ll have a couple of people who are explorers and innovators already.

“If you give them encouragement, they will be your biggest asset. Learn from them.”

Broker Innovation Summit returns

Many of these themes will be explored in depth at the Broker Innovation Summit 2026, which returns to Sydney on 24 June and Melbourne on 3 July.

Williams said that among other things, his keynote speech will teach attendees six no-regret moves in AI that they can immediately implement.

“What you’re going to get at the event is one of Australia’s most enduring digital pioneers who understands business, regulated environments, leadership and industry and will help you leapfrog into getting value from AI,” Williams added.

Hosted by Broker Daily in partnership with principal partner NextGen, the one-day summit will bring together brokers, technology leaders, and industry innovators to examine how AI, automation, and digital-first lending models are reshaping the future of broking.

Click here to book your tickets.

For more information, including agenda and speakers, click here.

[Related: AI heavyweights unveiled as keynote speakers for Broker Innovation Summit 2026]

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