Panel discussion : Future-Ready Actuaries in the Age of AI

Title: Future-Ready Actuaries in the Age of AI

Topic Summary: The panel discussion will explore how the actuarial profession can adapt to rapid technological change, focusing on the core skills that remain essential in the age of AI, how individuals can drive their own continuous development, and how organizations can effectively upskill teams. Participants will leave with concrete ideas on how to upskill. The session will run for 45 minutes, followed by a 15-minute Q&A and an apéro.

Date: 23 September, 18:00-19:00, followed by an apéro

Venue: KV Business School, Bildungszentrum Sihlpost, Sihlpostgasse 2, 8004 Zürich

Panelists:

Akos Arendas: Akos Arendas is Head of Actuarial at Zurich Global Employee Benefits Solutions (ZGEBS) in Zurich Insurance Company. He leads a cross-functional team of actuaries and software developers, with a focus on IFRS 17 reserving, risk-based economic reporting, portfolio performance insights, and the maintenance and development of actuarial pricing and underwriting tools.

Originally trained as an applied mathematician, Akos has over 10 years of actuarial and advisory experience across insurance, including prior roles at Zurich Insurance Company and in consulting at Deloitte and PwC. He is a qualified actuary in Switzerland and Hungary and recently completed an ETH Zürich Certificate of Advanced Studies in Machine Learning in Finance and Insurance, reflecting his interest in how AI and modern analytics can strengthen actuarial work in practice.

Patrick Cheridito: Patrick Cheridito is a professor of mathematics at ETH Zurich. He is the director of ETH’s RiskLab and FinsureTech Hub. In addition, he chairs the Actuarial Data Science Group of the Swiss Association of Actuaries.

Peter Davidson: Peter Davidson is an actuary with over 20 years of experience across life, non-life, and capital markets, spanning the UK, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, and Switzerland. He currently serves as Engineering and Pricing Lead Actuary at Ryerson Networks AG, where he develops risk quantification and pricing frameworks for capital-intensive industries — mining, energy, and agriculture — where traditional insurance approaches often fall short.

Prior to that, Peter has held a wide range of roles throughout his career, including as appointed actuary at the insurtech startup wefox, as well as at more traditional companies. This breadth gives him a perspective on both traditional actuarial practice and the evolving demands of non-traditional roles. A strong advocate for practical technology adoption, Peter believes that data engineering tools such as Python, SQL, and Git offer actuaries an accessible path to automation and analytical innovation — and that today's AI tools lower that entry bar even further.

Kimberly Marie Feucht: Kimberly Marie Feucht is a credentialed actuary with a solid foundation in portfolio management and a dynamic career that’s evolved alongside the industry. Her journey began in the U.S., where she leveraged her skills in data science to build commercial pricing models. She has also worked in both reserving and group level pricing roles in Switzerland. In her current role at Helvetia Baloise Group, she helps lead a technical pricing transformation by embracing the new skills she believes actuaries will need in the age of AI.

Apéro, offered by the Data Science Group/SAA

(To assist with accurate catering arrangements and minimize food waste, kindly cancel your registration if you are unable to attend.)