Engineering the Future of Czech Insurance IT

European Business: Mr. Hudec, as part of VIG, AIS Servis works closely with Czech insurers Kooperativa and ČPP. What role does your company play in day-to-day operations? 

Tomáš Hudec: Our primary mission is to deliver software solutions for these insurers. Our flagship product is Golem, which serves as their core business system. Organizationally, we operate through five divisions, each focused on a specific business domain. One division develops software that supports insurance sales and account management – essentially a CRM-type environment. Another focuses on assisting in the development of life-insurance products, which is central to Kooperativa’s business. A third division provides solutions for claims management. These vertical teams are supported by two cross-functional shared-services units: one dedicated to testing and quality assurance, and another responsible for R&D and platform development. Together, these teams enable us to support the insurers’ full operational lifecycle. 

European Business: What is the largest project AIS Servis is currently working on? 

Tomáš Hudec: Our main focus right now is the development of Neuron, a new core business platform that we intend to launch as the full successor to Golem within the next few years. Three releases are already in production. Given its scale, Neuron is probably one of the largest software projects currently underway in the Central European insurance sector. We expect development to take another three to four years. The challenges are significant – not only technologically, but also in terms of organization and delivery. The new platform will be far more flexible and cloud-ready. It will rely on agile microservices that enable smoother operations and faster adaptation. At the same time, integration is extremely complex. One of our biggest challenges is that business requirements and technological opportunities evolve rapidly. Our clients cannot simply wait several years for a new system to be completed. So while we are building Neuron, we must continue to update and enhance Golem – even though we plan to retire it eventually. At times that dual effort can feel almost schizophrenic operationally, but it is essential to keep business running smoothly. 

European Business: Against that backdrop, how transformative is artificial intelligence for AIS Servis? 

Tomáš Hudec: For us it is absolutely clear: without making intelligent use of AI, we will not remain a leader in our field – even with a modern core platform. My colleague Petr Cacka has been particularly visionary in this area. We are fortunate to have a highly skilled and motivated R&D team that is already integrating advanced AI capabilities into both our products and our internal processes. In the near future, agent-based systems will play a much larger role for both our clients and our own operations – especially in testing and DevOps support. As a result, the profile of software engineers will evolve. Deep knowledge of system design and architectural patterns will become even more important, while the translation of business requirements into Java or other programming languages will increasingly be handled by AI. This shift will dramatically accelerate the development of new features and improvements while also making our developers far more productive. 

European Business: Companies across the industry are under pressure to become more agile. How is AIS Servis approaching this challenge? 

Tomáš Hudec: For us, agility goes beyond moving from traditional waterfall models to sprint-based development. It also means strengthening our close collaboration with the teams at Kooperativa and ČPP and ensuring transparency across all processes. AIS Servis has proven that we can respond quickly whenever and wherever our clients need us. As the pace of change increases, preserving that responsiveness will be essential. At the same time, agility does not mean abandoning structure. Stable rules remain critical to keeping operations efficient. Without them, things would quickly become chaotic. 

European Business: You joined AIS Servis almost three years ago after nearly two decades in the banking and insurance sectors. What motivated you to take on this role? 

Tomáš Hudec: Much of my career has been spent at the intersection of IT architecture and the financial-services and insurance industries. After many years in technical and executive roles, I felt that this experience could bring a valuable perspective to AIS Servis. What truly motivates me is our team. Our people operate at the technological cutting edge every single day, and it’s inspiring to work with them. We also benefit from a supervisory board that approaches strategic decisions with remarkable foresight. Together, we are excited about playing a meaningful role in shaping the future of the Czech insurance sector.