What do trade wars, tariffs, and extreme weather have in common? They’re not just headlines—they’re actuarial inputs. Michel Léonard joins Alicia Burke and Sara Chen (Actuarial Review) to talk about modeling the unpredictable, why actuaries need to rethink volatility, and how economic risk signals are evolving faster than our frameworks.

DJ Falkson joins Alicia Burke and Max Martinelli live at the CAS Annual Meeting to unpack what housing, zoning, and migration have to do with insurance risk. From his work at Lemonade to his advocacy for smarter urban design, DJ shares why actuaries need to look upstream—not just at where risk lands, but what creates it. Expect history, policy, politics, and a reading list that’ll keep you busy.

What Ancient Climates Teach Us About Modern Risk

In this special minisode of Almost Nowhere, we continue the conversation with Brandon Katz, Executive Vice President at KatRisk, recorded at the 2025 CAS Annual Meeting in Austin, Texas.

Brandon, one of only a handful of insurance professionals with formal training in paleoclimatology, takes us back in time to explore how Earth’s ancient climate history can inform today’s catastrophe modeling and climate risk decisions. We discuss what long-term climate records reveal about variability, extremes, and uncertainty — and why looking millions of years into the past can help actuaries better understand the risks ahead.

A thoughtful add-on to our full episode on climate data and catastrophe modeling, this minisode is perfect for listeners curious about how deep climate science connects to modern insurance practice.

What Actuaries Need to Know (and Avoid) in Cat Modeling

Recorded live at the 2025 CAS Annual Meeting in Austin, Texas, this episode of Almost Nowhere features Brandon Katz, Executive Vice President at KatRisk, in a deep dive on climate data, catastrophe modeling, and the limits of what models can tell us.

Brandon brings a rare perspective to insurance, with formal training in meteorology, climate science, and paleoclimatology, to unpack what we truly know about climate risk — and where uncertainty remains. The conversation explores how climate signals are (and aren’t) incorporated into catastrophe models, which perils have higher versus lower confidence, and how actuaries can responsibly interpret model outputs amid regulatory and stakeholder pressure.

We’re back from the 2025 CAS Annual Meeting—and kicking off a slate of new episodes with a quick minisode on something big: the AI Fast Track is now available on demand.

Alicia and Max break down why this shift matters, how you can fit it into your year-end CE plans (attestation season, anyone?), and what makes this course a solid way to level up before the ball drops.

🎁 Use code almostnowhere before December 15, 2025 for $100 off registration.

Learn more:

https://thecasinstitute.org/press_release/ai-fast-track-program-now-available-on-demand/

Rob Lieberthal joins Alicia Burke and guest co-host Brian Fannin in our final episode recorded at 2025 CLRS to unpack his CAS-funded research project focused on turning messy, unstructured claims data—like medical notes and adjuster reports—into actuarial insights using large language models (LLMs). From the promise of synthetic medical records to the limits of explainability, Rob shares how he and his team are building an end-to-end framework that could change how we work with complex claims data. Plus, hear how you can get involved and provide input as the project evolves.

Alicia Burke and Max Martinelli talk with Ted Rock, owner of Rock Roofing, about everything from storm chasers and hail claims to why insurers and contractors so often talk past each other. Ted shares an unfiltered view from the other side of the claim.

It’s a conversation about trust, timelines, and what happens when boots on the roof meet spreadsheets at the desk.

Following our conversation with TomTom’s Vinod Poomalai on personalized insurance and mobility data, Geoff Werner joins Alicia Burke and guest co-host Mallika Bender to go deeper into telematics. From harsh braking to pricing fairness, Geoff explains how telematics is evolving from add-on to centerpiece—and why actuaries can’t afford to ignore it.

They explore data portability, behavioral insights, equity concerns, and the role of telematics in claims, underwriting, and even urban planning. A must-listen for anyone serious about the future of auto insurance.

Max Martinelli and Alicia Burke pull back the curtain on sponsored episodes. Almost Nowhere will always feature thoughtful, unsponsored conversations—but we also partner with select companies that have something real to offer our audience. We’ll keep asking the hard-hitting questions you count on. No fluff.

Curious about sponsorship or ad opportunities? Reach out at [email protected].

When actuaries talk about location data, most are still thinking in zip codes. Vinod Poomalai of TomTom joins Alicia Burke and Max Martinelli to challenge that mindset—and introduce a new world of map, traffic, and mobility data that’s reshaping pricing, claims, fraud, and more.

This is our first sponsored episode of Almost Nowhere, created in partnership with TomTom. You’ll hear how one in four cars on the road today is powered by TomTom data, and how that data is now being used by insurers to improve loss ratios, sharpen driver scores, and even influence public infrastructure. Vinod also shares why small and midsize carriers shouldn’t sit this wave out—and how to get started without getting overwhelmed.