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Compared to this time last year, the insurance technology industry looks quite different. There is a focus on innovation and implementation of next-generation technologies like drones, the Internet of Things and big data that in the past had been the realm of theorycraft. There's also a huge appetite for digital talent and startups that can rocket carriers to the next level quickly. Read on to find out some of the key innovators who will be making waves in the near future.
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Sebastian Blandizzi, Manulife

The SVP and CIO of Manulife's investments division is visible across the company leading innovation lab launches and hackathons, including a partnership with an innovation company in Canada that launched today.
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Jayne Olsen, Swiss Re

The SVP currently leading the North America Analytics unit at Swiss Re has been seeking new, innovative ways to attract and hire top talent and expand Swiss Re's big data and smart analytic capabilities. She is leading a hackathon in New York in December.
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Greg Barats, Hartford Steam Boiler

Barats, CEO of the Munich Re unit, has made aggressive moves this year to invest in innovative technology startups, especially those focused around the Internet of Things. These include Waygum and Augury.
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Dr. Henna Karna, AIG

AIG's actuarial business information officer is just one piece of a rapidly growing data and analytics organization at the insurer. She is working on a transformation effort to build a data-driven platform across multiple channels inside the company's actuarial organization.
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Gary Sullivan

Gary Sullivan, Erie

Erie's VP of property and subrogation claims managed to get a working drone into production, assisting with the claims process, in just under six months from FAA approval.
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Brad Weisberg, Snapsheet

Along with co-founder CJ Przybyl, Weisberg's startup Snapsheet is working on automating car insurance claims. It includes USAA among its investors.
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Brooks Tingle, John Hancock

All eyes will be on John Hancock's wearables-powered Vitality program in 2016, championed by the SVP of marketing and strategy.
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Maria Price, Seibels

Price is the current chair of the Insurance Technology Services Cluster in Columbia, S.C., one of the first such efforts to build an insurance-specific tech cluster in the nation.
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Yaron Ben-Zvi, Haven Life

Ben-Zvi founded the agency Haven Life, which works with MassMutual and is trying to re-imagine the life insurance application process using big data and analytics.
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Jennifer Fitzgerald, Policygenius

The founder of this Brooklyn-based insurance distribution startup is building a company that has attracted the eye of several major industry players, including MassMutual, AXA and Transamerica, whose venture capital arms are investors.
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Brian Hemesath, Global Insurance Accelerator

After a successful first round, the accelerator for insurance technology startup companies headed by this insurance outsider will welcome a second class in February.
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Dan Preston, Metromile

Preston is CEO of this growing usage-based insurance provider, which expanded to Illinois and the East Coast in 2015. He also brokered a deal with Uber that positions it as a leader in leveraging the sharing economy.
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Greg Tachetti, State Auto

State Auto is in the midst of a big technology revamp that is being mentioned in the company's earnings calls as a differentiator. Tachetti, the company's CTO, is tasked with executing the transformation and living up to the hype.
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Guillaume Cabrere, AXA Lab

Cabrere set up shop in San Francisco to help AXA find all things digital talent, including interesting startups to invest in and talent to help pilot new initiatives for the global insurer.
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Gregory Bailey, Insure.VC

Bailey is a partner for the venture capital fund that is focused on supporting insurance industry startups, along with Chad Nitschke, co-founder and CEO, as well as Steven Giddens and Shad McKnight. He also has served as a mentor in the Global Insurance Accelerator.