Be Here. Be Great. Working for a leader in the insurance industry means opportunity for you. Great American Insurance Group's member companies are subsidiaries of American Financial Group. We combine a "small company" culture where your ideas will be heard with "big company" expertise to help you succeed. With over 30 specialty and property and casualty operations, there are always opportunities here to learn and grow.
At Great American, we value and recognize the benefits derived when people with different backgrounds and experiences work together to achieve business results. Our goal is to create a workplace where all employees feel included, empowered, and enabled to perform at their best.
As the insurance industry undergoes digital transformation, the AI Innovation Lab serves as Great American's proving ground for emerging AI capabilities. Team members evaluate, prototype, and validate AI technologies against real business needs, determining what's ready for enterprise adoption and what isn't. This is applied research with a purpose: every initiative ties directly to business requests, and successful proofs-of-concept are handed off to IT delivery teams for production implementation.
What Makes This Role Unique
This isn't a traditional research position, and it isn't a traditional development role. It's something in between:
Rapid experimentation: You'll go deep on a technology, build working prototypes, and determine fit-for-purpose—then move to the next challenge. If you thrive on variety and learning, this is your environment.
Business-driven focus: Every project originates from a real business ask. You're not exploring technology for its own sake; you're solving problems for underwriters, actuaries, claims professionals, and business analysts across our 37 business units.
Fail-fast culture: Not everything will work, and that's expected. A well-documented "no, and here's why" is as valuable as a successful proof-of-concept.
Partnership model: You'll work closely with Enterprise Architecture and IT delivery teams to ensure successful innovations transition to production. Building something that can't be operationalized isn't success.
Human-in-the-loop philosophy: We believe AI augments human decision-making rather than replacing it. Ethical, transparent, and explainable AI isn't optional in insurance, it's foundational.
Great American’s culture is built on connection, shared learning, and strong relationships. To support this, employees in this role are expected to be on-site a minimum of two days a week, with the potential to work three days remotely. Core in‑office days are Tuesday and Thursday but will be determined by business needs.
Essential Job Functions & Responsibilities
Evaluate emerging AI technologies (agents, workflows, RAG architectures, tool-augmented LLMs) against business requirements and enterprise constraints
Build rapid prototypes that demonstrate feasibility and business value to stakeholders
Document findings thoroughly, both successes and failures, to inform enterprise AI strategy
Partner with Enterprise Architecture to ensure prototypes align with API-first principles and can transition to production systems
Enable business-side data science capabilities: self-service analytics sandboxes, Python environments, and dashboards that don't require IT intervention
Implement and evaluate agent frameworks, Model Context Protocol (MCP) integrations, and AI orchestration patterns
Communicate complex technical concepts to business stakeholders and executives
Mentor team members and contribute to a culture of continuous learning
Job Qualifications
PhD in Computer Science, AI/ML, or related field OR Master's degree with 7+ years of hands-on AI/ML development experience OR Bachelor's degree with 10+ years and demonstrated expertise
Strong Python programming skills and familiarity with ML frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow, or equivalent)
Experience building working prototypes, not just theoretical models
Demonstrated ability to learn new technologies quickly and evaluate them objectively
Understanding of API design principles and how AI capabilities integrate with enterprise systems
Strong written and verbal communication skills—you'll be explaining your findings to technical and non-technical audiences alike
Intellectual curiosity and comfort with ambiguity
Preferred Qualifications
Experience in insurance, financial services, or other regulated industries
Hands-on experience with agentic AI frameworks (LangChain, LangGraph, CrewAI, or similar)
Familiarity with Model Context Protocol (MCP) or similar AI integration standards
Experience with Microsoft Azure cloud services
Background working with actuarial, underwriting, or claims processes
Understanding of enterprise architecture patterns and production system constraints
Experience transitioning prototypes or research projects to production teams
Technical Environment
Python, Java, Microsoft Azure, REST APIs, LLM APIs and gateways, vector databases, agent frameworks, containerization (Docker/Kubernetes), SQL and NoSQL databases. Specific tools will evolve as the technology landscape changes—adaptability matters more than expertise in any single platform.
To Apply please provide:
Resume highlighting relevant AI/ML project experience and outcomes achieved
Examples of prototypes, proofs-of-concept, or projects you've built (GitHub, portfolio, or descriptions)
Brief description of a technology you evaluated that *didn't* work out, and what you learned
References who can speak to your technical capabilities and collaboration style
Business Unit:
Property & Casualty IT ServicesBenefits:
We offer competitive benefits packages for full-time and part-time employees*. Full-time employees have access to medical, dental, and vision coverage, wellness plans, parental leave, adoption assistance, and tuition reimbursement. Full-time and eligible part-time employees also enjoy Paid Time Off and paid holidays, a 401(k) plan with company match, an employee stock purchase plan, and commuter benefits.
Compensation varies by role, level, and location and is influenced by skills, experience, and business needs. Your recruiter will provide details about benefits and specific compensation ranges during the hiring process. Learn more at http://www.gaig.com/careers.
*Excludes seasonal employees and interns.
Top Skills
What We Do
Based in Cincinnati, Ohio, the operations of Great American Insurance Group are engaged primarily in property and casualty insurance, focusing on specialty commercial products for businesses. We have more than 30 specialty property and casualty insurance businesses, and in 2021, approximately 50% of our gross written premium in our property and casualty operations was generated by business units with a Top 10 market ranking. Great American Insurance Company has received an "A" (Excellent) or higher rating from the AM Best Company for more than 110 years (most recent rating evaluation of "A+" (Superior) affirmed December 3, 2021). The members of Great American Insurance Group are subsidiaries of American Financial Group, Inc. (AFG), also based in Cincinnati, Ohio.
