Higson 4.2, a significant update to our rules engine that will be released in October, will add two new features that will speed up, improve the intelligence, and simplify the management of business logic. The update emphasizes AI integration and visual rule modeling, two essential elements of contemporary business rules management.
The new version will premiere at ITC Vegas 2025, where visitors can see live demonstrations of how Higson 4.2 improves business automation and decision rules management.
Flows: Visual Business Rule Management System for Business Logic
With Higson 4.2, the rules engine gains a new visual interface for designing logic. Called Flows, this feature introduces a clean, no-code way to build and understand complex decision processes.
Each Flow is a visual graph of logic blocks, such as rules, validations, and functions, that can be connected to represent dependencies and execution order.
This approach to rule modeling gives business users:
• A no-code interface for designing logic visually
• End-to-end clarity on how rules are executed
• Faster prototyping and testing without IT handover
Flows complement traditional decision tables by enabling orchestration of complex business logic. They strengthen rule management within a BRMS by enabling stakeholders to view, test, and update logic in a single, unified environment.
This reduces misunderstandings and accelerates the deployment of changes in business processes. By visualizing the full decision-making path, organizations can ensure clear business rules are maintained, enhancing compliance and governance.
AI Inside: Embedded Predictions with ONNX
Higson 4.2 also introduces built-in AI integration. Business users and data teams can embed machine learning models directly into their decision flows, without relying on external infrastructure.
Thanks to ONNX (Open Neural Network Exchange) support:
• Models trained in TensorFlow or PyTorch can be imported seamlessly
• Predictions are executed inside the rules engine
• Model outputs directly influence decisions, such as pricing, fraud detection, or risk assessment
This combination of deterministic logic with predictive intelligence enables hybrid decisioning. It elevates business rules management by uniting traditional rule modeling with AI-powered insights in one secure and high-performance business rules engine.
Why It Matters
Insurance carriers today operate in highly dynamic environments, where products, pricing, and regulatory conditions must be updated frequently, sometimes weekly. Traditional rule engines and hardcoded logic struggle to keep up with this pace, especially when changes depend on IT deployments or complex release cycles.
Higson has long empowered business teams to independently configure rules, pricing, and product logic without IT involvement. The 4.2 release enhances this autonomy even further.
With Flows, decision logic can now be modeled not just by defining individual rules but by visually mapping the interactions between those rules. This provides business users with a clear, visual insight into dependencies, execution order, and decision outcomes, making even complex configurations simpler to design, review, and maintain.
Additionally, the AI integration in Higson 4.2 enables insurers to embed their own machine learning models (in ONNX format) directly within rule flows. This facilitates hybrid decision-making that combines deterministic logic with predictive insights all within the Higson BRMS platform.
Together, these advancements help insurance teams streamline logic design, enhance change traceability, and significantly reduce the time needed to create and manage product and pricing updates.
Strengthening Business Rules Management with BRMS
Higson 4.2 is more than just an upgrade to a rules engine; it marks a significant advancement in modern business rules management. By integrating rule modeling, rule management, and AI-enhanced decision-making, the platform offers the comprehensive capabilities of a business rules management system (BRMS). This empowers organizations with enhanced control over their decision logic, greater compliance through transparent rule management processes, and accelerated product updates enabled by sophisticated rule modeling tools. This all-in-one BRMS solution ensures that insurers and enterprises can accurately and confidently configure, test, and deploy business rules at scale.
Conclusion
This new release addresses the growing complexity of modern business operations, where organizations must manage intricate decision-making processes that involve numerous variables and rapidly changing market dynamics. With the new visual interface, business analysts and other non-technical users gain the ability to create and modify rules without relying heavily on IT departments, fostering greater agility and collaboration.
Moreover, the embedded AI capabilities enable the rules engine to incorporate predictive simulations and real-time data analysis, enhancing the accuracy and relevance of automated decisions. This hybrid approach of combining deterministic rules with artificial intelligence empowers businesses to respond swiftly to regulatory requirements and evolving customer needs, ensuring compliance and better business outcomes.
In summary, Higson 4.2 sets a new standard for business rules management systems (BRMS) by delivering a comprehensive, user-friendly, and intelligent solution that streamlines rule management, accelerates innovation, and drives operational excellence across industries.