The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has unveiled three prototype concepts aimed at improving pension awareness, engagement and adequacy among women, Gen Z and self-employed and gig-economy workers, following its first 'pensions techsprint' held in June.

Using consumer research and detailed pension journeys, multidisciplinary teams were tasked with designing solutions to make personal pensions more accessible, relevant, and easier to engage with.

EIOPA noted that low financial literacy, income volatility, perceptions of complexity and structural inequalities continued to undermine participation across member states.

With this in mind, the first concept was named ‘Future Me’, an AI-enabled 'co-pilot' aimed at helping women navigate pension decisions by offering personalised insights, peer comparisons and simple scenario-based projections.

According to EIOPA, the concept is designed to reframe retirement planning as empowerment, counter the effects of career breaks and the gender pay gap, and build sustainable engagement through clear language and behavioural nudges.

Meanwhile, the ‘FIRE’ prototype targets Gen Z, combining short-form educational content, gamification and an AI companion to guide young people from basic budgeting habits to more advanced saving and investment decisions.

The mobile-first design reflects Gen Z’s preference for digital interaction and transparency, using achievements, progress tracking and community features to encourage long-term participation.

The final prototype, aimed at self-employed and gig-economy workers, proposes a save-as-you-earn model integrated into banking or gig-platform apps.

Through the ‘GIG’ concept, each time income is received, a portion is automatically directed to pension savings and an emergency fund, with real-time dashboards and an AI planner helping users manage irregular income patterns.

EIOPA said the approach aims to tackle inertia and liquidity concerns by embedding pension saving directly into workers’ existing financial routines.

The report also highlighted broader insights from the exercise, including growing consumer demand for pension functionality to be embedded in tools people already use daily, and the importance of integrating information from across pension pillars to support informed decisions.

It found that traditional pension products may feel outdated to younger consumers who favour transparency, liquidity and investment-led saving models.

EIOPA stressed that structural barriers, such as the gender pay gap and lack of automatic enrolment for gig workers, require structural solutions, not just better communication.

The pensions techsprint event, which brought together supervisors, academics, start-ups, industry representatives and consumer groups, focused on the challenges faced by groups most at risk of inadequate retirement income.

It also emphasised the need to balance consumer protection with flexibility for innovation, particularly as digital tools and AI create new opportunities and risks.

While the concepts were not tested with consumers due to the sprint’s time constraints, EIOPA said the exercise strengthened collaboration between national supervisors and innovators and helped build a practical understanding of how technology and behavioural science can support better outcomes.

Indeed, the regulator suggested that 'techsprints' could become a valuable tool for supervisory convergence and future policy development as pension systems respond to demographic pressures and evolving consumer expectations.

---