Allianz X

In the series “Get to know X”, we introduce our colleagues and share a bit about them and their role at Allianz X. In this edition, we’re getting to know Sümer, Senior Manager.    ❓ What’s your role at Allianz X My main focus areas are fintech and wealthtech investments. I also supervise some of our portfolio companies like WeLab to support them in their mission to grow. Furthermore, I work together with the team on strategic projects to develop our business.     ❓ When did you join the team I joined Allianz X in October 2020. I was truly amazed by the warm welcome of the team and how smoothly I was brought onboard.     ❓ Can you tell us a bit about yourself I’m originally from Cologne, Germany. After my studies in the Netherlands, I started my career in consulting in Germany and later moved to Istanbul where I joined Allianz Turkey. After several years of invaluable experiences abroad, I decided to return to Germany and to pursue my next career journey in venture capital – and I’m very glad I did. I’m also passionate about sports. I often try out different types, but I always come back to padel tennis, cycling, basketball, football, and skiing.    ❓ What’s the biggest lesson you have learned so far Seek an environment where you can grow. Don’t shy away from jumping into the deep end and taking on new challenges you can learn from. Moreover, during my career journey so far, I’ve learned that resilience is like a muscle that you can develop over time. It’s a beneficial skill, especially in critical situations.    ❓ Your highlight at Allianz X so far Having the privilege of working with such a great team and exceptional founders is a true highlight. Each new deal and project marks yet another. I also really enjoy the variety of topics we work on. They provide countless opportunities to learn, gain new insights, and enrich one’s experience. I’m really enjoying my journey at Allianz X. 

Our portfolio companies Coalition, Inc. and Next Insurance are among the most promising insurtech startups of 2024, according to CB Insights. 🥳 Coming back from our social media summer break, CB Insights has released its Insurtech 50 annual list of the most promising private insurtech companies in the world. The companies have been selected based on CB Insights datasets, including deal activity, industry partnerships, team strength, investor strength, commercial maturity, mosaic scores, and more. 📊 One of the 2024 Insurtech cohort highlights is the funding and valuations of the companies. The cohort has raised USD 5.6 billion across more than 210 disclosed equity deals. Next Insurance and Coalition top the list with USD 1.1 billion and USD 770 million respectively. 💪 Take a look at the other highlights of this year’s Insurtech 50 annual list: https://lnkd.in/erDF5djU

The wheels are still turning at Allianz X, but we’re taking a summer break from social media. Instead of posts, we are sharing the Allianz X Summer Reading List 2024. It’s comprised of recommendations from our colleagues in order of the books’ ratings on Goodreads. We wish you happy reading and an enjoyable summer break! ☀️🏖😎 📚 Dschinns by Fatma Aydemir 📚 Tracers in the Dark: The Global Hunt for the Crime Lords of Cryptocurrency by Andy Greenberg   📚 Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology by Christopher R. Miller   📚 Sandworm: A New Era of Cyberwar and the Hunt for the Kremlin's Most Dangerous Hackers by Andy Greenberg   📚 Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones 📚 The Gates of Athens by Conn Iggulden   📚 Brief Answers to the Big Questions by Stephen Hawking 📚 Antifragile: What's Our Problem?: A Self-Help Book for Societies by Tim Urban 📚 Barbarians at the Gate: The Fall of RJR Nabisco by Bryan Burrough and John Helyar   📚 The Trading Game by Gary Stevenson 📚 Seeking Wisdom: From Darwin to Munger by Peter Bevelin   📚 Wool by Hugh Howey 📚 Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense by Rory Sutherland 📚 Lend me your ears: Great speeches in history by William Safire 📚 The Art of Statistics: How to Learn from Data by David Spiegelhalter 📚 How Democracies Die by Steven Levitsky 📚 How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: The Solutions We Have and the Breakthroughs We Need by Bill Gates 📚 The Money Kings: The Epic Story of the Jewish Immigrants Who Transformed Wall Street and Shaped Modern America by Daniel Schulmann 📚 Things That Gain from Disorder by Nassim Nicholas Taleb 📚 The Millionaire Next Door by Stanley & Danko Thanks to Alexander, Giuseppe, Gregor, Irene, Jan, Johannes, Justus, Maya, Michael, Nhi, and Sümer for sharing your recommendations.

#JobAlert: Join our portfolio company CLARK as a Global Brand Designer (m/f/x). 📣 As a Global Brand Designer, you will be responsible for: ✅ Integrity and consistency of CLARK’s global brand across all touch points for internal and external stakeholders ✅ Maintaining CLARK’s current design systems and contributing to the continuous creative evolution of its brand design ✅ Developing international brand marketing campaigns in collaboration with CLARK’s local country teams ✅ And more CLARK is one of the world’s leading insurtechs and the first unicorn company from Frankfurt, Germany, dedicated to building a digital insurance expert in its customer’s pocket to keep for a lifetime. CLARK serves over two million customers across five European markets, finding the best possible insurance solutions for them. Apply now: https://lnkd.in/d6pZd2j4  Or, check out other jobs at CLARK: https://lnkd.in/ddCmTCWZ 

VCs investment in Artificial Intelligence (AI) varies in the top five economies based on economic factors, national priorities, and more, according to World Economic Forum. VC and private investments in AI are necessary to remain competitive. However, the different AI investment approaches between the US, China, Japan, India, and Germany, reflect the diverse strategies, priorities, and visions for the future of each economy.   In the US, for example, VC investments in AI totaled USD 290 billion over the last 5 years, mostly in key sectors such as autonomous vehicles, healthcare, and IT infrastructure: 🚗 The mobility and autonomous vehicle sector attracts private investment in research and development, particularly from tech giants like Google, Tesla, and Uber.  🩺 The US’ aging population has boosted demand for AI-driven healthcare solutions, driving VC investment in AI-powered medical diagnostics and remote patient monitoring technologies. 💻 AI is also emerging as a key tool in IT infrastructure across the country to automate data management tasks, optimize network performance, and enhance security measures. The AI landscape continues to evolve. Over the next years several new trends and challenges will emerge, making it essential that countries adapt their strategies accordingly. However, the increasing importance of data privacy and security is driving a shift towards more responsible AI, focusing on developing AI systems that are transparent, explainable, fair, and ethical.  Read the whole article to read more about the investment strategies of China, Japan, India, and Germany: https://lnkd.in/eBtMwXCi 

Ford Pro Insurance, powered by our portfolio company Pie Insurance, is now offered in seven States in the US. 🤩 In 2023, Ford Credit —the financial services arm of Ford Motor Company — and Pie Insurance launched a new commercial auto insurance product, Ford Pro Insurance, to protect Ford Pro vehicle fleets. 🤝 Many small and medium businesses depend on their vehicles and drivers. The commercial auto insurance protects Ford Pro’s customer fleets by offering dependable coverage to stay productive in case of an accident, repair case, or other fall outs. As of July 10, 2024, Ford Pro Insurance is available in seven states, highlighting the increasing demand from small and medium business owners for a more data-driven type of auto coverage that also includes a complete suite of services whenever they are needed. Congratulations to Pie for reaching another milestone together with Ford Credit. 🥳 Read more about it here: https://lnkd.in/g5fTJYK7 

Global venture funding has increased for the second straight quarter to USD 65.7 billion, according to CB Insights’ State of Venture 2Q2024 report. 🤩 Most of the funding is concentrated in the US with USD 39 billion, followed by Europe with USD 14 billion and Asia with USD 9,7 billion. Asia has fallen below USD 10 billion for the first time since 2014, while the US and Europe have seen double-digit funding growth. 🌍 The report also shows that even though funding reached another high in Q2, the number of deals slid for the ninth quarter in a row, resulting in a deal volume less than half what it was at its peak in 1Q2022. In Q2, investors were more selective about the investing environment, focusing on fewer but bigger deals in areas with strong growth potential like AI. Nearly one-third of all VC funding went to AI startups – the highest quarterly share on record – driven by mega rounds for xAI, Scale AI, and CoreWeave.  📈   Read the whole report to get more insights into global trends in venture funding, sector spotlights on fintech, retail tech, and digital health, as well as geographic trends with a detailed view on each continent: https://lnkd.in/gabrBgNV 

A warm welcome to our new colleague Daniel Gropper. 💐 Daniel has joined Allianz X as a Finance Intern. He will support our colleagues in accounting and controlling activities, including analyzing the performance of portfolio companies from a quantitative and qualitative standpoint, quarterly valuation of portfolio companies, and preparing financial reports.  Prior to Allianz X, Daniel did an apprenticeship at Bayerische Landesbank before studying economics at LMU Munich – Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München.  Daniel already gained valuable experience as an intern and working student at companies like UniCredit, HSBC, and TÜV SÜD in Madrid. After his internship at Allianz X, he will start his master's in economics at LMU in October. We’re happy to have you onboard, Daniel! 🥳 

A warm welcome to our new colleague Jan Eike Tronte Kröger. 🌻 Jan has joined the Platforms & Acquisitions team as an intern during his MBA studies. Prior to Allianz X, Jan worked at Allianz Consulting for over eight years where he was an Engagement Manager and Team Lead in the Technology & Innovation practice area. During his time at Allianz Consulting, he contributed to and led project engagements in several organizational domains, including: procurement, IT & operations, data analytics, and artificial intelligence. Jan is currently doing his MBA at INSEAD. As part of his studies, he will gain insightful experience at Allianz X before completing the remainder of his MBA in Singapore.  We’re happy to have you onboard, Jan! 🥳 

On July 17, our portfolio company Coalition, Inc. will host its first webinar in the new series Future of Cyber Insurance. In the format, experts from Coalition help brokers to stay up-to-date and to be able to look ahead when it comes to cyber risk. The first webinar will be hosted by Tiago Henriques and Mike Volk. They will talk about the topic Anatomy of Active Risk Selection. In this session, they will dive into how to: ➡️ use real-time cyber risk data and security insights to inform the accuracy of underwriting; ➡️ improve trust and stability in the cyber insurance industry; and ➡️ stay on the cutting edge of cyber insurance. Sign up for the webinar to get an in-depth look at how Coalition collects and analyzes data to deliver actionable security insights: https://lnkd.in/dxuSgdE3