Managing Director
EY
155 N Wacker Dr #200
Chicago, IL 60606
224-523-2878
anibanerji@gmail.com
Ani is an Insurance Technology & Digital Transformation Leader with 14+ years driving digital change for Fortune 500 P&C insurers. Expert in Guidewire implementations, AI/ML underwriting automation, and cloud strategy—delivering measurable gains in speed-to-market, risk accuracy, and operational efficiency. Trusted advisor blending deep insurance domain expertise with emerging tech innovation, leading global teams to design scalable, future-ready solutions.
Designed, developed, and launched the North American Bengali Conference (NABC Chicago 2024) app for Web, iOS, and Android, achieving $2M+ in transactions, 5,000+ downloads, and seamless performance for 3,000+ concurrent users. Led product vision, architecture, UX, data strategy, and publishing to streamline logistics and celebrate the community’s historic return after 30 years.”
:
AI Council President
The Capital Markets Company
141 W Jackson Blvd Suite 2100
Chicago, IL 60604
925-364-1295
basusouma@gmail.com
Souma Basu is a trusted leader in the financial services and insurance sector, dedicated to advancing the responsible adoption of artificial intelligence across insurance advisory and banking ecosystems. With a proven record of guiding complex transformation programs, he shapes technology strategy in ways that balance innovation with regulatory, ethical, and client-centric standards.
Souma is known for turning emerging technologies into practical, scalable solutions that empower advisors and elevate the client experience. His work spans digital modernization, data enablement, and enterprise AI strategy.
Colleagues and partners consistently value Souma’s steady leadership, collaborative style, and strategic insight. He brings together technical fluency and business acumen to ensure AI initiatives drive sustainable growth, strengthen compliance and risk frameworks, and preserve the human relationships at the heart of the profession.
As a thoughtful voice on the future of AI, Souma champions innovation that is ethical, transparent, and aligned with the real needs of advisors, clients, and the broader financial services community.
AI Council Chair
EY
155 N Wacker Dr #2000
Chicago, IL 60606
847-208-4214
sanket.das.nmims@gmail.com
Vice Chairman
EY
155 N Wacker Dr #2000
Chicago, IL 60606
850-449-3679
itsak005@gmail.com
Anshul Kaushik is a global technology leader whose career has been defined by bold,
enterprise-scale transformation across the life insurance, retirement, and annuities
industries. At EY, Anshul drives innovation in technology, data, and AI products, helping
organizations harness trusted data, advanced analytics, and artificial intelligence to
transform at scale — unlocking new avenues of growth and resilience.
Throughout his career, Anshul has led sweeping modernization programs that have
redefined how insurers and financial institutions operate. His initiatives include:
Modernizing core life policy administration systems through AI-driven automation
Re-engineering underwriting and claims with NLP-enabled capabilities
Migrating retirement and annuity platforms onto modern cloud ecosystems infused
with predictive analytics and insights.
With deep expertise in data management, governance, and commercialization, Anshul
has built AI-ready data foundations that balance innovation with privacy, security, and
regulatory integrity. Widely recognized as an influential voice in the global data and AI
community, Anshul’s work demonstrates how disciplined execution and next-generation
technologies can help life insurers and retirement providers not just navigate
complexity — but emerge stronger, more resilient, and future-ready.
AI Council Executive Director
Akuna Capital
2963 Francis Ct
Aurora, IL 60503
312-927-5917
anokhkishore@gmail.com
Anokh Kishore is a Senior Software Engineer at Akuna Capital, a leading options market maker, where he develops the firm’s ultra-low-latency market data platform powering real-time trading decisions. With over 14 years of experience across C++ systems engineering, distributed infrastructure, and applied AI, he specializes in building high-performance data systems that deliver intelligence at microsecond scale.
Before joining Akuna, Anokh worked at Microsoft, where he led initiatives in distributed systems and network automation within Azure — his services were part of the decision-making pipeline driving billions of dollars in network optimization and capacity planning. Earlier in his career, he contributed to Citadel and Chicago Trading Company (CTC), developing performance-critical trading infrastructure used in live production environments.
Anokh is passionate about scalable architecture design, intelligent automation, and the intersection of AI and low-latency systems — blending deep technical execution with data-driven strategy to push the boundaries of performance, reliability, and intelligence.
AI Council Executive Director
AI Council Secretary
AI Council Vice President
Copyright © 2020 NAIFA-Chicagoland
124 W Lake St
Bloomingdale, IL 60108
Phone: 630-443-3333
naifachicagoland@gmail.com