Former Verisk CEO Joins ZestyAI's Board as Insurance Embraces AI

Appointment comes as ZestyAI achieves cash flow positive growth, doubles product usage, and adds 26 new carrier customers

Apr. 15, 2026 at 12:39pm by

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A minimalist studio still life photograph featuring a stack of insurance policy documents, a pen, and a calculator arranged elegantly on a clean, monochromatic background, conceptually representing the abstract corporate strategy and risk management in the insurance industry.The insurance industry is embracing AI to strengthen underwriting, risk management, and portfolio decisions across the enterprise.San Francisco Today

ZestyAI, the Risk and Decision Intelligence Platform for the insurance industry, announced that Scott Stephenson, former Chairman, President, and CEO of Verisk Analytics, has joined its Board of Directors. Stephenson's appointment comes as the insurance industry moves beyond data-driven modernization into a new stage where artificial intelligence is embedded across enterprise decision workflows.

Why it matters

Stephenson's experience building durable, proprietary analytics platforms at a global scale is invaluable as ZestyAI builds the next generation of AI-powered risk intelligence for the insurance industry. His appointment reinforces both the scale of the opportunity and the strength of ZestyAI's foundation as the company expands its multi-peril AI platform across underwriting, rating, and reinsurance workflows.

The details

In the past year, ZestyAI has turned cash flow positive while more than doubling product usage, added 26 new clients, expanded commercial relationships with 12 existing enterprise customers, surpassed 200 regulatory approvals nationwide, and introduced its agentic AI platform ZORRO Discover and fire science platform Z-SPARK. This momentum is translating into measurable market impact, with insurers using ZestyAI enabling coverage for nearly one million families and businesses previously considered difficult or uneconomical to insure.

  • ZestyAI announced Stephenson's appointment on April 15, 2026.
  • Stephenson served as Chairman, President, and CEO of Verisk Analytics from 2013 to 2022.

The players

Scott Stephenson

Former Chairman, President, and CEO of Verisk Analytics, where he helped transform the company into a global data and analytics leader. Prior to Verisk, he was a Senior Partner at the Boston Consulting Group.

Attila Toth

Founder and CEO of ZestyAI, the Risk and Decision Intelligence Platform for the insurance industry.

Ben Cukier

Founder and Managing Partner at Centana Growth Partners and board member of ZestyAI.

ZestyAI

The Risk and Decision Intelligence Platform for the insurance industry, trusted by Property & Casualty carriers, reinsurers, brokers, and regulators across the United States.

Verisk Analytics

A global data and analytics company that Stephenson helped transform during his tenure as Chairman, President, and CEO.

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What they’re saying

“Insurance is one of the world's most essential financial systems — a centuries-old institution that underpins economic growth and resilience. Over the past two decades, data and actuarial science reshaped underwriting and risk management. Scott helped lead that transformation. Today, artificial intelligence is becoming the core decision infrastructure across the enterprise. His experience building durable, proprietary analytics platforms at a global scale is invaluable as we build the next generation of AI-powered risk intelligence.”

— Attila Toth, Founder and CEO of ZestyAI

“This industry has endured for centuries because it adapts. The last major shift put data and analytics at the center of the enterprise. The next competitive frontier will belong to companies that build durable advantages from proprietary data and apply artificial intelligence to understand and manage risk with greater precision. ZestyAI is building exactly that kind of platform, pairing property intelligence with trustworthy AI to strengthen how insurers underwrite and manage portfolios. I look forward to working with the team as they scale this capability across the industry.”

— Scott Stephenson

“ZestyAI has delivered what we look for in a market-defining company — disciplined execution, enterprise adoption, and profitable growth. The company has expanded into a multi-peril AI platform embedded across underwriting, rating, and reinsurance workflows. Welcoming Scott Stephenson to the board at this stage reinforces both the scale of the opportunity and the strength of the foundation already in place.”

— Ben Cukier, Founder and Managing Partner at Centana Growth Partners and board member of ZestyAI

What’s next

ZestyAI will continue to scale its AI-powered risk intelligence platform across the insurance industry, leveraging Stephenson's expertise to drive further growth and innovation.

The takeaway

The insurance industry is undergoing a major transformation, shifting from data-driven modernization to the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence across enterprise decision workflows. ZestyAI's appointment of former Verisk CEO Scott Stephenson to its board signals the company's position as a leader in this AI-powered future of insurance.