(ERGO headquarters. Source: ERGO Group AG.)
ERGO Group (Düsseldorf, Germany) has appointed Guy Goldstein Chief AI Officer, a newly created role on the Management Board of ERGO Group AG, effective Oct. 1.
Goldstein will be responsible for the systematic implementation of artificial intelligence across ERGO Group, according to a company statement. He will take on the role in addition to his position as CEO, ERGO NEXT Insurance.
Markus Rieß, CEO, ERGO Group.
The appointment follows ERGO’s integration of ERGO NEXT, formerly NEXT Insurance, into the group. Goldstein founded the Palo Alto, Calif.-based small commercial P&C insurer in 2016. ERGO NEXT focuses on digital insurance for small business owners and uses AI and machine learning to support online purchasing and servicing.
“With the creation of the Chief AI Officer role, we are underscoring our strategic ambition to implement artificial intelligence systematically along our entire value chain and in all our markets,” comments Markus Rieß, CEO, ERGO Group AG.
Rieß says Goldstein has established what ERGO describes as an AI-driven insurance venture with ERGO NEXT, and that the company will bring that experience to the group board.
AI Across the Value Chain
Goldstein says the role will focus on advancing ERGO Group’s ambition to establish a leadership position in artificial intelligence, which he describes as a pillar of the company’s strategic roadmap through 2030.
“We will now take the next step to fully embed and scale the use of this groundbreaking technology across the business and the wider organization,” comments Goldstein, CEO, ERGO NEXT Insurance.
Guy Goldstein, Chief AI Officer, ERGO Group AG, and CEO ERGO NEXT.
Goldstein says ERGO will seek to leverage synergies from his ERGO NEXT responsibilities and the company’s U.S. growth trajectory.
ERGO also announced that Mark Klein, currently Chief Digital Officer, ERGO Group AG, will leave the company at the end of the year at his own request. Klein has served as Chief Digital Officer at ERGO since 2016, initially at ERGO Digital Ventures AG and, since 2024, as a member of the Management Board of ERGO Group AG.
In his most recent role, Klein was responsible for ERGO’s strategic digitalization initiatives, group marketing and global partnerships.
ERGO NEXT, previously known as NEXT Insurance, provides digital small business insurance, including general liability, business owners policies, workers’ compensation and professional liability. After a partnership with Munich Re and ERGO that began in 2017, the company was acquired in 2025 and became part of ERGO Group’s global insurance network.