American Family investing $20 million in University of Wisconsin-Madison data science initiatives

American Family Insurance said Friday it will invest $20 million in data science initiatives at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, expanding an existing partnership between the insurer and university.

The award includes $10 million for research over the next decade and a $10 million endowment to create the American Family Insurance Data Science Institute on campus.

The Madison-based company said the award will help advance studies in fields such as artificial intelligence, genetics, drug development, material science and business.

"American Family Insurance is a proud partner and supporter of UW-Madison," Jack Salzwedel, American Family Insurance chief executive, said in a statement. "This latest partnership recognizes the importance of using data science to help our customers, by providing insights on the challenges they face and how best to take action to meet them. The institute will also develop a pipeline of potential future employees in the data science field, as well as provide valuable learning opportunities for our current employees."

Data scientists analyze and derive meaning from data, which then can be put to use by organizations.

The institute will be located in the McArdle Building. Brian Yandell, professor of biometry, statistics and horticulture, will be the interim director.

The institute will bring together the data science community at UW and foster new industry partnerships in a rapidly evolving area, American Family and the university said.

"Creating the American Family Insurance Data Science Institute will bring faculty together from across campus to collaborate on cutting-edge research, spark new opportunities for our students, and give us new ways to work with industry partners," said Chancellor Rebecca Blank. "It will advance discoveries in sectors vital to the Wisconsin economy and make sure our university remains a leader in this important area of research."

American Family and the university said establishing the institute builds on UW's previous initiatives in data science, such as a data science hub and creation of a data science major that is expected to attract close to 1,000 undergraduates over the next five years.

New data science research will yield breakthroughs in many areas, ranging from precision agriculture to autonomous vehicles to the comprehensive study of world literature, the insurer and UW said.

"Like many other academic institutions, we are grappling with how to address the challenges of a rapidly evolving data landscape," said Norman Drinkwater, interim vice chancellor for research and graduate education. "Given the strength of our faculty in both fundamental and applied data science, we are in a good position to develop an interdisciplinary institute focused on data science and we are grateful to American Family Insurance for their continuing partnership in this research area."

Paul Gores can be reached at (414) 224-2392. Follow him on Twitter @pgores