Nationwide is sliding into its 100th birthday with record profits, a massive artificial intelligence gamble and a downtown makeover that will literally change the Columbus skyline. The mutual insurance giant says a deliberately diversified portfolio is finally paying off, and now it wants to put AI tools in the hands of nearly every employee. For people who live and work downtown, that mix translates into new apartments in a familiar Nationwide tower, questions about future hiring and a bit more heat from regulators and customers.
Financial snapshot as Nationwide hits the century mark
Nationwide reported another strong year, with sales and premiums of about $73.2 billion and what the company called a fifth straight year of record profits, according to The Columbus Dispatch. The Dispatch also reports that Nationwide ended the year with nearly $33 billion in adjusted capital and paid more than $20 billion in claims and benefits in 2025. CEO Kirt Walker credited the performance to an “intentional, diverse portfolio” and to the Columbus workforce he says helped deliver those numbers.
Big bet on AI and tech modernization
Nationwide has committed $1.5 billion to technology through 2028, setting aside roughly $100 million a year specifically for artificial intelligence, the company announced in a press release. Per the company newsroom, Nationwide wants about 90 percent of associates using everyday AI tools by next year and has already rolled out several marquee use cases, including telematics-based driver scoring and AI-generated claims summaries, a plan the company details in its newsroom announcement. Tech coverage of the initiative has also highlighted a leadership shakeup, with Michael Carrel elevated to enterprise chief technology officer to steer the effort and give the push a clear face and name inside the company.
Downtown conversion underscores Columbus footprint
Nationwide Realty Investors is reworking its 18-story office tower at 280 N. High St. into The Centennial on High, a mixed-use project that would hold roughly 148 apartments and about 75,000 square feet of remaining office space, a plan the Downtown Commission recently approved. As reported by Columbus Underground, the conversion is being touted as part of Nationwide’s centennial-era investment spree in Columbus and is expected to welcome its first residents in 2027. The shift follows the company’s decision to pull more workers into its main plaza buildings and slots neatly into a growing list of downtown office-to-residential conversions.
Legal clouds and reputational risk
The centennial glow comes with some shadows. Nationwide has faced legal challenges tied to its pet-insurance business, including an agreement to an up-to-$1.4 million settlement over alleged prerecorded pet-insurance calls, according to ClassAction.org. In a separate case, a proposed class action claims Nationwide wrongfully canceled roughly 100,000 “Whole Pet” policies in 2024 in what plaintiffs describe as a bait-and-switch, with ClassAction.org outlining the breadth of those allegations. The lawsuits complicate Nationwide’s birthday messaging even as the company highlights community giving and local development projects.
What to watch
All eyes will be on how quickly Nationwide turns that AI spending into concrete productivity gains and whether the tech push comes with retraining, new local hiring or both. Company leaders argue that being a mutual insurer gives them breathing room to make long-range bets, a point CFO Tim Frommeyer made to The Columbus Dispatch. Regulators, customers and employees, though, will be watching just as closely to see how Nationwide balances growth, automation and its promises to policyholders in the months ahead.
