# Ladder

> Ladder is a Palo Alto-based digital life insurance company that lets people apply for fully-underwritten term life coverage online in minutes, with the ability to ladder coverage up or down as life changes. Founded in 2015, it became the first fully digital life insurance carrier in 2021 after launching its own underwriting entity, Ladder Life Insurance Company.

- **Founded:** 2015
- **Headquarters:** Palo Alto, California, United States
- **Founders:** Jamie Hale (Co-founder & CEO), Laura Hale (Co-founder), Jeff Merkel (Co-founder), Jack Dubie (Co-founder (engineering))
- **Team size:** ~150
- **Products:** LadderLife Term Life Insurance, Laddering, Ladder API, Ladder Life Insurance Company
- **Notable:** Became the first fully digital life insurance company (2021), Issued LadderLife coverage in all 50 U.S. states, Raised $194M total across five funding rounds

## Products & services

- **LadderLife Term Life Insurance** — Fully-underwritten term life insurance from $100K to $8M, with terms from 10 to 30 years. Application takes about 5 minutes; real-time underwriting can issue coverage on the spot.
- **Laddering** — Customers can increase or decrease coverage as life changes - a feature largely unique in the term life market.
- **Ladder API** — An embedded life insurance platform that lets partner fintechs, employers, and benefits providers offer Ladder's coverage inside their own products.
- **Ladder Life Insurance Company** — Ladder's own licensed insurance carrier, launched in 2021, making it the first fully digital life insurance company.

## Achievements

- Became the first fully digital life insurance company (2021)
- Issued LadderLife coverage in all 50 U.S. states
- Raised $194M total across five funding rounds
- Reached a $900M valuation on Series D
- Quadrupled revenue in 2020 during COVID-driven demand for life insurance
- Launched a public API for partners to embed life insurance

## Latest updates

- **2021-10** — Raised $100M Series D at a $900M valuation; became first fully digital life insurance company.
- **2022-06** — Opened new Palo Alto headquarters at 100 Forest Ave.
- **2022** — Released first national brand campaign aimed at a new generation of consumers.
- **2023** — Expanded API distribution and embedded life insurance offerings.

## Links

- Website: https://ladderlife.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ladderlife
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/ladder
- GitHub: https://github.com/ladderlife
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LadderLifeInsurance
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ladderlife/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/ladderlife/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/ladder
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-28