JvM NERD and ERGO are making understanding insurance child’s play

To mark the occasion of today’s Apple Vision Pro launch in Germany, Jung von Matt NERD and ERGO Group AG have jointly released an app for the new Mixed Reality headset. Thanks to the free ERGO Tinymap app, users can learn more about risks and corresponding types of insurance in a playful way. The first of four scenarios approaches the topic of traffic accidents interactively; the other three, which cover break-ins, health, and economic risks, will follow over the next eight weeks. All in all, the pilot project’s immersive approach is intended to not only help users gain a better understanding of everyday risks and the need for suitable protection; it will also give them a first impression of the range and potential of “spatial computing” – a technology that merges the virtual and physical worlds.

The Apple Vision Pro is Apple’s latest innovation in the field of Augmented Reality (AR). It promises to fundamentally change how we use and experience digital content. Featuring high-resolution displays, more precise motion tracking, and seamless integration into the Apple ecosystem, the Vision Pro offers a completely new immersive experience that goes far beyond what was once thought possible. Jung von Matt NERD (concept), its tech spinoff ALFR3D (development) and ERGO, one of the leading insurance groups in Germany and Europe, recognised its potential advantages for the insurance sector early on, prompting them to jointly develop the app.

According to Matthias Nawrocki, Head of Metaverse, ERGO Group AG: “We at ERGO constantly have our fingers on the pulse of our time. We were the first insurer to integrate the Metaverse into our strategy, and now we’re also the ‘first mover’ when it comes to the Apple Vision Pro. By releasing the ERGO Tinymap, we want to not only allow insurance and risks to be experienced in a completely new, interactive and disruptive way. Innovations like this also help us realise it all in an easily accessible way, very much in keeping with our brand promise: simple, because it matters.”

In the words of Thanh Dao, Managing Director of Jung von Matt NERD and Lead ALFR3D: “The Apple Vision Pro represents a significant leap in AR, using gesture control to take immersive experiences and interaction to a new level. Accordingly, we didn’t want to just design appealing spaces and visuals, but to also give consumers an interactive role, one that appeals to the inner child inside us all.”

The first scenario that the partners have gone live with on the app is all about “traffic accidents”. Users can navigate in and interact with a miniature 3D virtual city. Not only can they grasp and rearrange the “residents” of the ERGO Tinymap like chess pieces; they can also control the traffic lights. This can be used to coordinate traffic in the virtual city, but can also lead to accidents when more than one signal is set to green at once. When that happens, the app presents data and background information on traffic accidents in Germany, along with information on ERGO’s motor insurance options.

Over the next eight weeks, this scenario will successively be joined by three others. The first will focus on “break-ins”: users will find information on all aspects of burglary and theft, and on personal belongings and property insurance. For the “health” scenario, users will find facts and figures on e.g. flu outbreaks in Germany and health insurance options. In turn, the “economic crisis” topic will address e.g. the effects of companies declaring bankruptcy in Germany. Here, too, statistics and other data will be visualised and details provided on surety insurance and professional liability insurance.

Once the pilot phase has been successfully completed, the ERGO Tinymap’s range of functions will be steadily expanded. The jointly developed app from JvM Nerd and ERGO is available free of charge at the Apple Store.