Hippo
Corporate brand
UnclaimedHippo is a United States property-insurance company that uses digital distribution, data analytics, and connected-home technology to provide homeowners insurance.
Last updated August 25, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile yet.
Overview
Hippo is an American property-insurance company headquartered in San Jose, California. The company provides homeowners insurance covering residential property, personal possessions, and liability arising from accidents at an insured home. Unlike a conventional insurer that may rely heavily on paper-based applications, local agents, and periodic underwriting reviews, Hippo built its proposition around online purchasing, automated property-data analysis, and technology intended to help homeowners identify risks before they become claims. The company was founded in 2015 by Assaf Wand and Eyal Navon. Wand had worked as an investor at Intel Capital and as a consultant at McKinsey, while Navon brought experience in software engineering and research and development. Wand has described his interest in insurance as partly influenced by his father's long career in what he viewed as an outdated insurance industry. The company was established shortly after Wand's earlier startup, Sabi, was acquired. Hippo raised venture financing to develop its product and entered the California market in April 2017. Its initial consumer proposition emphasized a rapid online quotation process, transparent digital purchasing, and the use of smart-home sensors. These sensors were intended to identify problems such as water leaks or other conditions that could cause damage, positioning the service as a combination of insurance protection and proactive home maintenance. Hippo also distributed policies through independent insurance brokers, rather than relying exclusively on direct online sales. The company expanded beyond California as its underwriting and distribution capabilities developed. Its technology uses property information, artificial intelligence, and large datasets to assess characteristics of a home and support pricing, underwriting, and claims-related processes. The model is designed to make homeowners insurance more tailored and convenient while giving the insurer additional information about the insured property. Hippo's expansion was supported by several financing rounds between 2016 and 2020. Investors included Comcast Ventures, Fifth Wall Ventures, Felicis Ventures, Lennar, Bond Capital, and Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance. The company also acquired Sheltr in 2019, adding a home-wellness and inspection capability to its technology platform. In 2021, Hippo became a publicly traded company through a merger with the special-purpose acquisition company Reinvent Technology Partners and began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker HIPO. In 2022, founder Assaf Wand moved into the role of executive chairperson, while insurance executive Richard McCathron became chief executive officer. Hippo has therefore combined a technology-startup identity with the regulatory, capital, underwriting, and claims requirements of a property insurer. Its core business remains homeowners insurance in the United States, supported by direct digital sales, independent broker distribution, property-data analytics, and connected-home services.
History
Hippo was established in 2015 by Assaf Wand and Eyal Navon as a technology-oriented response to the traditional homeowners-insurance model. Wand had experience in venture investing at Intel Capital and consulting at McKinsey, while Navon had a background in software engineering and research and development. Wand's interest in insurance was influenced by his father's long professional experience in the industry. The founders sought to build an insurer that could collect and analyze more information about residential properties and use that information to simplify purchasing and improve risk prevention. The company raised its first reported Series A financing in December 2016 to fund product development. Hippo launched its homeowners-insurance service in California in April 2017. At launch, its marketing emphasized a fast online quotation, a transparent digital application and purchase process, and smart-home sensors intended to detect conditions that might lead to property damage. This approach distinguished Hippo from a conventional agent-led process by placing digital self-service and preventative monitoring at the center of the customer experience. Hippo subsequently expanded its geographic availability and distribution model. In addition to selling policies directly, it worked with independent insurance brokers. Its underwriting and product infrastructure used artificial intelligence, property data, and other large datasets to evaluate homes and support insurance decisions. The company reported that its insurance became available to more than half of United States homeowners by 2019. During the same period, it reported rapid sales growth and a large aggregate value of insured properties. Financing was a major part of Hippo's expansion. In 2018, the company raised Series B financing led by Comcast Ventures and Fifth Wall Ventures and later announced Series C financing led by Felicis Ventures and Lennar. Some of the capital supported the creation of a customer-service and insurance-operations center in Austin, Texas. In 2019, Hippo raised a further round led by Bond Capital, and in 2020 it completed additional financing, including a substantial investment from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance, a subsidiary of MS&AD Insurance Group. The company also broadened its proposition through corporate development. In November 2019, Hippo acquired Sheltr, a San Francisco startup focused on technology-enabled home wellness checkups. The transaction complemented Hippo's preventative-risk positioning by adding services aimed at identifying maintenance issues and improving the condition of insured homes. Hippo entered the public markets in August 2021 through a business combination with Reinvent Technology Partners, a special-purpose acquisition company. Following the transaction, Hippo Holdings Inc. was listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol HIPO. The transition exposed the company to the additional scrutiny and financial expectations associated with being a public insurer and technology company. Public-market performance later placed pressure on the business; reference material notes that by mid-October 2022 the value of shares bought at the initial public offering had fallen by more than 95 percent, although this dossier does not treat that market movement as a company scandal. In June 2022, Wand moved from the chief executive role to executive chairperson, and Richard McCathron, an insurance industry executive, became chief executive officer. The change reflected Hippo's continuing shift from startup formation toward operating as a regulated insurance business. Hippo's identity remains centered on United States homeowners insurance, with direct digital distribution, broker partnerships, data-based property assessment, and connected-home or home-wellness tools forming the main elements of its operating model.
- 2022
Executive leadership transition
[1]Assaf Wand becomes executive chairperson and Richard McCathron becomes chief executive officer.
- 2021
Public-market listing
[1]Hippo becomes publicly traded through its combination with Reinvent Technology Partners and lists on the New York Stock Exchange as HIPO.
- 2020
Strategic investment from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance
[1]Hippo receives additional financing, including an investment from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance.
- 2019
Sheltr acquisition and national expansion
[1]Hippo acquires Sheltr and reports that its insurance is available to more than half of United States homeowners.
- 2018
Operational expansion and Series B and C financing
[1]The company raises additional venture capital and opens a customer-service and insurance-operations center in Austin, Texas.
- 2017
California market launch
[1]Hippo begins offering homeowners insurance in California through a digitally led purchasing process.
- 2016
Series A financing
[1]Hippo raises Series A venture financing to support development of its insurance product.
- 2015
Hippo is founded
[1]Assaf Wand and Eyal Navon establish Hippo as a technology-focused homeowners-insurance company.
Products and positioning
A technology-enabled homeowners insurer focused on digital purchasing, data-driven underwriting, rapid quotations, and preventative protection for residential property.
Homeowners insurance · 2017
Hippo Homeowners Insurance
Hippo's principal offering is homeowners insurance for residential properties in the United States. Policies are designed to protect the insured dwelling and possessions and to provide liability protection for accidents occurring at the property. Hippo supports policy sales through direct digital channels and independent insurance brokers, using property information and automated analysis in the quotation and underwriting process.
Connected-home risk prevention · 2017
Hippo Smart Home Protection
At its initial launch, Hippo incorporated smart-home sensors into its customer proposition. The devices were intended to identify issues such as leaks or other potentially damaging conditions before they developed into significant insurance losses. This offering supports Hippo's positioning around prevention and continuous awareness rather than relying solely on compensation after a claim.
Home maintenance services · 2019
Home wellness and property checkups
Following its acquisition of Sheltr in 2019, Hippo added access to technology-enabled home wellness checkups and related preventative services. These services are intended to help identify maintenance or property risks and complement the company's insurance products by improving the condition and resilience of insured homes.
Marketing campaigns
- 201760-second homeowners insurance quote
United States · California
Hippo's launch marketing highlighted the ability to obtain a homeowners-insurance quote rapidly online. The campaign presented speed, transparency, and a simplified digital purchase journey as alternatives to a more traditional insurance process.
Outcome. The quotation-led proposition formed a central part of Hippo's initial California market entry and broader technology-oriented brand identity.
- 2017Smart-home prevention proposition
United States
Hippo promoted smart-home sensors as a way to identify potential household problems before they produced major damage. The message connected insurance with preventative home care and connected-device technology.
Outcome. The proposition helped differentiate Hippo's launch positioning from conventional homeowners insurers, although the reference material does not provide campaign performance figures.
Brand decisions
2022
Move to insurance-experienced executive leadershipOtherBackground
After becoming a public company, Hippo continued developing from a venture-backed technology startup into a regulated insurance operator.
Action taken
Assaf Wand became executive chairperson, while Richard McCathron became chief executive officer.
Aftermath
The transition placed an insurance-industry executive in the chief executive role while retaining the founder as executive chairperson.
2021
Combine with Reinvent Technology PartnersM&ABackground
Hippo pursued access to public capital markets through a transaction with a special-purpose acquisition company.
Action taken
Hippo combined with Reinvent Technology Partners and became listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Aftermath
Hippo Holdings Inc. became a publicly traded company under the ticker HIPO.
2019
Acquire SheltrM&ABackground
Hippo sought to extend its insurance model into preventative home maintenance and property-risk services.
Action taken
The company acquired Sheltr, a San Francisco technology-enabled home-wellness-checkup startup.
Aftermath
The acquisition broadened Hippo's home-protection platform beyond the insurance policy itself.
Recent events
Reported
Hippo reports third-quarter 2026 financial results[2]
Hippo reported third-quarter 2026 net income of $9 million and adjusted net income of $20 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2026.
Reported
Hippo updates 2026 full-year guidance[2]
Hippo announced updated 2026 full-year guidance, raising its gross written premium, revenue, and adjusted net income ranges and lowering its combined ratio and CAT loss ratio ranges.
Reported
Hippo and Greenlight Re announce strategic partnership[3]
Hippo announced a strategic partnership with Greenlight Re’s Innovations segment. The arrangement connects potential investment in emerging managing general agents with carrier and reinsurance support; Hippo subsidiary Spinnaker is positioned as the preferred U.S. admitted carrier for qualifying co-invested programs.
Reported
Deis Labs introduces Hippo PaaS[4]
Deis Labs introduced Hippo, a self-hosted platform-as-a-service for building and running WebAssembly workloads. The platform was still in development and was not production-grade at the time of the unveiling.
- Unconfirmed
Reported
Hippo and Topa transition their partnership[5]
Hippo and Topa announced a mutual decision to transition their three-year partnership. After the transition, policies held by Hippo customers with Topa will be underwritten by Spinnaker, a Hippo subsidiary, without interruption in service or coverage.
Reported
Hippo completes acquisition of Spinnaker Insurance Company[6]
Hippo announced that it had closed its acquisition of Spinnaker Insurance Company, which joined Hippo's family of companies.
Reported
Hippo raises $150 million in Series E funding[7]
Hippo announced that it secured $150 million through its Series E funding round, bringing its total funding to $359 million and valuing the business at $1.5 billion post-financing.
- Unconfirmed
Reported
Hippo acquires Sheltr[8]
Insurance company Hippo bought Sheltr, a preventative home maintenance startup, for an undisclosed price.
Sources8 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/hippo · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled