Alipay allows pet owners to buy insurance by using facial recognition on their cats and dogs
- Ant Financial’s Alipay platform launches health insurance for furry friends
- Close-up photos of dogs and cats can identify pets by their unique nose prints
Pet insurance has existed for a while, but it often involves filling out boring paper forms and taking a trip to the vet to implant a microchip in their furry friends. China’s e-payment giant Alipay has another idea.
The platform, run by Ant Financial – an affiliate of South China Morning Post owner Alibaba – has launched its first ever insurance program for cats and dogs. Enrolment is simple: Using the Alipay app, owners can set up a digital profile of their animals by taking a few pictures.
A close-up photo of the animal is used to establish a record of its nose print. Similar to how smartphones and law enforcement agencies use fingerprints to identify humans, dogs and cats are believed to have unique and permanent skin patterns on their noses.
Kennels have long been using nose prints to track and locate lost dogs. Nose prints are taken by coating a dog’s nose with ink and pressing it on a white cardboard. Alipay has given the primitive method an upgrade by using AI to locate special markers on an animal’s nose.
Alipay says its technology is less invasive than microchipping and has an accuracy rate above 99 per cent. An annual premium for the service starts at 199 yuan (US$28), getting buyers a 3,000-yuan (US$429) policy that covers accidents and non-congenital diseases.
