2026 Agenda

True innovation starts with early cultural signals hidden in everyday conversation. This session explores how insights and R&D leaders can use cultural foresight and anthropology to separate fads from forces, translate signals into strategy, and move from reacting to change to shaping the future. Key Takeaways: 1. Fads fade. Cultural signals shape markets. 2. Spot cultural signals early to stay ahead of lasting mainstream trends. 3. Predictive anthropology turns cultural meaning into foresight for innovation.

Marketing teams rely on message testing to make critical decisions on strategy and resources. We will present a case study of how our team transformed our message testing workflows over the course of one year by applying new AI tools in a research setting: to streamline translation/localization, to help code our open-ended responses into benchmark-able statistics, to share insights more accessibly Key Takeaways: 1. We have greater analytical tools than ever before thanks to AI 2. Good uses of AI can make research communications more self-serve and customized within organizations 3. Agents are the future of project management

MRII’s For the Love of Learning study debuts its fourth annual wave at IIEX North America. Attendees get a first look at new data, gathered from insights professionals worldwide, on job satisfaction, skill gaps & AI adoption, plus evidence of how training & development drive engagement. The session offers a practical snapshot of the profession & guidance for building a future-ready workforce. Key Takeaways: 1. Examine multi-year global data on researcher satisfaction, career outlook & advocacy 2. Identify the most urgent training & upskilling priorities, inc. AI literacy, soft skills & more 3. Guidance on how leaders can use learning opportunities to improve performance, satisfaction & more

In a galaxy of rapid innovation, the Market Research Alliance faces a growing dark side: fraudulent data infiltrating our studies at lightspeed. Could the path to victory lie in returning to our roots – restoring the human connections that once brought balance to the Force? Join this mission to explore how progress and trust can coexist, and why saving credits shouldn’t cost us so much. Key Takeaways: 1. A New Hope: the market research origin story 2. The Scampire Strikes Back: how fraud truly harms our industry 3. Return of the Data: plotting the course to trustworthy results

The next breakthrough in insights won't come from a new tool - it'll come from a new method. Join us to explore why traditional research is becoming a liability, what behavioral measurement makes possible, and how Church & Dwight is using it to move faster, spend less, and make decisions their leadership actually trusts. Key Takeaways: 1. The old research model isn't slowing you down - it's pointing you in the wrong direction. 2. The trade-off triangle is obsolete. Speed kills accuracy. Rigor kills relevance. AI convolutes. 3. Winning brands don't have bigger budgets. They have better signals, collected at the right moments.

The discrete research project is evolving into something better: continuous, conversational, and embedded insight. Ali will map the forces reshaping 2026, from synthetic audiences to autonomous workflows that learn and adapt. AI now handles the mechanics of data, transforming researchers into strategic architects who design the future rather than just analyzing the past. Key Takeaways: 1. Progression of global market researchers along the AI evolution / adoption curve 2. Best practices and use cases researchers have adopted to move from traditional to AI-powered 3. A hypothesis about how the future of insights will look in an AI-dominant world

Research only matters if people listen—and remember. This session explores how giving data a clear, creative voice helps research cut through, stick inside organizations, and travel externally. Joined by People Inc., we’ll unpack a project where the research itself became the content—a real-world example of making data truly talk. Key Takeaways: 1. Why research needs a strong voice to capture attention and earn buy-in across teams 2. How creativity and storytelling help data stick internally and travel externally 3. How to make research memorable without losing rigor

Synthetic sample is gaining momentum, but confusion remains around when it adds value. This session shares a real-world case study using GAN-based synthetic data to expand multicultural representation while maintaining data integrity, plus clear guidance on when synthetic should and should not be used. Key Takeaways: 1. What synthetic sample is and how it differs from LLM-generated data 2. When synthetic sample improves feasibility and representation 3. Clear guardrails for when human data is still required

Research teams are expected to answer more business questions today than ever before, but few have found a way to do it without sacrificing quality. In this session, Gordon Toon, Staff Researcher at Calendly, shares how his team leveraged AI-moderated research to inform their most ambitious product decisions.  Key Takeaways:  1. Where traditional research methods fall short and why Calendly turned to AI-moderated research  2. How Calendly applies AI-moderated interviews across all parts of their business  3. Where AI accelerates learning at scale, and where human judgment remains essential 

Synthetic data has moved from innovation labs into client decks, procurement conversations and live decision-making, requiring ever-stronger standards for guiding its use. In a landscape shaped by AI acceleration, budget pressure and demand for speed, buyers are being asked to trust augmented synthetic outputs without a shared language for evaluating them. This session offers a practical, globally relevant framework to help research leaders separate credible augmentation from statistical theatre and make confident, responsible decisions. Key Takeaways: 1. Clarify what buyers are actually being offered by distinguishing augmented data, fully synthetic data and persona-based systems, and understanding where each can and cannot add value. 2. Move beyond surface validation by assessing fidelity, correlations, dependencies and real-world performance against intended business use. 3. Evaluate privacy, bias, compliance and vendor transparency considerations to ensure synthetic data strengthens, rather than weakens, trust in insights.

The sauce industry innovates on flavor. For Winland Foods analyzed over 40k+ consumer videos and discovered the real drivers of satisfaction and dissatisfaction have almost nothing to do with taste. This session shares what they found and how it's shaping product strategy. Key Takeaways:  1. Why sauce’s biggest negative sentiment driver isn’t flavor—and what video revealed surveys missed. 2. How sauce became a restaurant destination driver, not a side item—and what it means for brands. 3. The widening gap between what chefs create and menus offer—a whitespace hiding in plain sight.  

Technology and AI have amplified consumer expectations and brand capabilities. Yet, as AI reshapes marketing, brands risk sliding into sameness: a loss of distinction, authenticity and growth. In this session, we explore how brands can thrive by reigniting the Human Spark: the creativity, cultural insight and community connection no algorithm can replicate. Key Takeaways: 1. Understanding the paradox: How AI accelerates marketing but erodes brand distinction 2. How people are reframing what matters to them against the backdrop of AI acceleration 3. Applying the Human Spark framework to unlock differentiation in an AI world

As U.S. privacy, AI, and data security restrictions laws expand at the federal and state levels, the insights industry faces a complex and fragmented regulatory landscape. The industry’s lobbyist will highlight the legislation and legal trends most likely to impact market research and analytics, and some practical guidance to stay compliant while keeping us viable nationwide. Key Takeaways: 1. What new U.S. privacy and AI laws mean for insights teams today and next 2. Where real regulatory risk exists—and where fears are overstated 3. What role each of you play in helping to turn the tide

Nestlé Nutrition set out to redefine the shelf-stable applesauce & smoothie pouch category after recognizing the opportunity to bring in a new set of consumers into a historically kid-dominated category: Adults. Through AI-led in-home interviews and in-store mobile shop-a-longs, we mapped shopper segments, adult consumption occasions, substitutions, and white-space growth opportunities—equipping field sales to drive category leadership and unlock incremental growth for the division. Key Takeaways: 1. How AI-video interviews helped us segment adult consumers to uncover their motivations, attitudes and usage occasions. 2. How AI-led shopper ethnographies sharpen category stories for retail selling. 3. How AI insights platform can be applied for iterative learning and decision making.

This presentation explores how AI localization has evolved from basic translation tools into sophisticated cultural intelligence systems that are revolutionizing multilingual and multicultural market research. Attendees will discover how leading research organizations are leveraging AI to conduct simultaneous studies across 20+ markets with unprecedented cultural accuracy and insight depth. Key Takeaways: 1. Evolution Roadmap 2. Implementation Strategy 3. Competitive Advantage Framework

How do you know if an activation worked — while it's still happening? CAA partnered with Reach3 Insights to find out. Using the Brand Experience Predictor (BXP), a proprietary measurement platform, 325 attendees at a major Super Bowl fan zone activation were surveyed in the moment via QR code—no post-event recall. The result was a rich, benchmarked picture of engagement, sharability and impact. Key Takeaways: 1. In-the-moment measurement captures what post-event surveys miss. 2. Benchmarking across an experiential database transforms single-event data into strategic guidance. 3. Measure beyond recall — shareability and brand impact are just as critical.

Don’t miss the 2026 Greenbook Insight Innovation Competition at IIEX North America, where five finalists—AddMaple, BluePill AI, N-Infinite by Livepanel, Nichefire, and Panoplai—will take the stage to present their pitches live.  Voting will close following the lunch break at 4:00 PM ET. Winners will be announced on Day Two of IIEX, Thursday, April 30 at 9:50 AM ET on the Blue Stage, with three awards presented: Experts’ Choice, Audience Favorite, and Industry Impact.

Traditional, static insight "maps" rarely spark action. Material and Northern Tool present an AI-driven approach that synthesizes complex data into an immersive journey tool. By uncovering the emotional quest behind utilitarian purchases, Northern Tool transformed its entire go-to-market strategy, from product assortment to staff training, turning insights into a lived experience. Key Takeaways: 1. Use AI to turn static data into interactive, multi-source journey tools that beat PowerPoint. 2. Shift from receiving to "experiencing" insights to drive stakeholder action and absorption. 3. Use the deeper meaning of a purchase to revolutionize GTM and merchandising strategies.

AI is rewriting the rules of qualitative research, but it isn't replacing what makes the craft valuable. Prayag Narula and Maryam Maleki, Ph.D., will reveal how AI takes the heavy lifting out of analysis, scales qualitative research beyond what was previously possible, and empowers organizations to uncover insights faster than before. Bring your toughest questions to this live Q&A. Key Takeaways: 1. Use AI to scale analysis and accelerate workflows while keeping human judgment at the center. 2. Discover real-world practices for empowering teams to surface insights without sacrificing rigor. 3. Learn how to apply these lessons directly to your organization’s challenges and opportunities.

Traditional B2B segmentation assumes buyers make rational, System-2 decisions. But real B2B buying is far more human. In this session, Talk Shoppe and Faire share how they reimagined B2B segmentation by focusing on buyers’ values, emotions, and mindsets. Drawing from a five-country study, attendees will learn how to balance rigor with human-centric insight to drive real business action. Key Takeaways: 1. How to design B2B segmentation that captures buyers’ values, emotions, and real decision drivers 2. Best practices for conducting scalable, meaningful segmentation research across global markets 3. Deliverables that help segmentation resonate internally and drive alignment and action

Go behind the scenes with Miix Analytics and LIV Golf as they apply marketing mix modeling to optimize media spend, boost ticket sales, and drive viewership across a growing global tour. Join ROI and MMM expert Hilary Borndahl and Luke Postlethwaite, Insight Director at LIV Golf, as they share how advanced analytics are powering smarter decisions in sports marketing. This case study demonstrates the real-world impact of MMM on brand, communications, and event strategy. Key Takeaways: 1. See how modern MMM can be used to optimize media strategy across channels - beyond just reporting to driving ticket sales and viewership. 2. Learn how to collaborate effectively between brand, insights, and analytics teams to translate data into action. 3. Gain inspiration from a real-world application of advanced analytics in the dynamic world of sports marketing.

Interbrand and Paradigm measured the role of brand and its impact on consumer preference. Our 2025 global study shows overall brand influence is declining, yet some categories are defying the trend. Greg Silverman and Sima Vasa share key findings and how marketers can apply these insights to drive growth and future-proof strategy. Key Takeaways: 1. Framework clarity: Understand key shifts in brand role dynamics and how they shape brand strategy. 2. Quality-first approach: Explore Paradigm’s data quality protocols to enhance trust in research. 3. Actionable insights: Translate brand insights into tangible actions that drive value and buy-in.

Most insights platforms assume the same workflow: log in, click through, export. We built one. It worked. Nobody opened it. In this talk, we'll share the pattern we kept seeing: when CMI teams stopped treating research as a destination and started treating it as a conversation inside Teams, everything changed. You'll leave with three questions to ask any vendor who pitches you a new dashboard. Key Takeaways: 1. CMI teams make decisions in Teams and Slack, not in the research platform they bought 2. A research copilot inside existing tools beats another dashboard nobody opens 3. Three vendor questions that separate a useful copilot from a brittle one

As audiences increasingly “snack” on short form content, what do we lose when iconic scenes are consumed out of narrative context? This neuroscience-led study, a collaboration between Warner Bros Discovery and Neural Sense, compares short versus long formats using eye tracking and EEG to reveal how context shapes enjoyment, emotional engagement and memory, and what this means for content strategy. Key Takeaways: 1. Snack grabs attention. Savour builds emotion. Learn when each works best. 2. Recognition is easy. Understanding is harder. See why context matters. 3. Familiarity feels good, but it doesn't improve memory. Rethink how brands use it.

Synthetic research is generating buzz, but most teams still lack a clear framework for when to use it and when not to. This session builds that framework. Qualtrics' Kayla Schou shares findings from dozens of controlled experiments to define the use cases where synthetic delivers real value—and the conditions where human data remains essential. You'll get an honest look at the traps researchers hit when adopting synthetic for the first time, the signals that tell you when a synthetic read is decision-grade, and the lessons learned by a team running these tools daily.

The Insights world is undergoing rapid, radical change—first from automation and SaaS tools, now from AI disrupting everything. Susan Griffin chats with researcher Sarah Snudden, who has tested emerging tools on both client and supplier sides and interviewed 50+ Insights leaders, to explore how practitioners are adapting, delivering impact, and pragmatically adopting new AI tools.

As traditional in-person qualitative methods remain largely unchanged and AI-driven approaches risk stripping away humanity, McCormick and Finch Brands explored a third path. In this session, you will hear how an AI-enhanced tailgating ethnography helped deepen human immersion and insight in live qualitative research. Key Takeaways: 1. Use AI to enhance in person qualitative work without losing human connection 2. Create adaptive conversations rooted in deeper context and understanding 3. Preserve nuance and build qualitative insight that compounds over time

Prospects, active members, churned customers — they each have a story to tell. Solidcore VP of Strategy & Insights Gillian Almeida joins Strella COO Priya Krishnan to share how AI-moderated conversations unlocked qualitative understanding across the full customer lifecycle, both digitally and inside the studio, and how those insights drove real business decisions.

Generative AI has made creative execution effortless, but judgment hasn’t kept pace. As asset volumes explode, teams struggle to evaluate and decide effectively. This session introduces the Creative AI Loop, a full-stack approach using predictive, suggestive, and generative AI to move judgment upstream, close the insight–creative gap, and improve campaign performance by up to 50%. Key Takeaways: 1. Apply the Creative AI Loop to scale creative judgment 2. Validate and optimize ads before launch 3. Turn data into usable creative guidance

You've heard a lot about AI in research. In this fireside chat, Sravanthi Kadali (The Insights Company) and Sharon Xiang (GlossGenius) get specific and honest about what's working, what's not — and where they keep AI out for now. They'll cover a Claude Skill that instantly answers VOC questions; how to ease customers into AI interviews and when to hold back; and how to approach synthetic research. Key Takeaways: 1. How to ease users into AI interviews with options — and where to hold back 2. Using Claude Skills to pull the right Voice of Customer insights — instantly 3. A practical, honest framework for where AI fits in your research workflow and where it doesn't

Your insights get smarter with every conversation, shouldn't your panel? Join us for a conversation about how AI is transforming not just interviews, but recruitment itself. Explore how open-ended screeners catch nuance that checkboxes miss, why dynamic panelist profiles outperform static info, and how an AI-moderator building rapport over time unlocks insights traditional panels can't touch. Key Takeaways: 1. Open-ended screeners with LLM evaluation surface better participants that rigid criteria would miss. 2. Panelist profiles should evolve like conversations do, creating richer context after each interview. 3. When the same moderator interviews panelists, it learns context and delivers better conversations.

What if deeper consumer understanding wasn't AI’s take on open-ended questions — it was a superhero secret lair? Inspired by a grandparent “getting on the carpet” to play with their grandchildren, Immersive Research employs behavioral science, gamification, and storytelling, to build customized research spaces where researchers, consumers, and clients explore objectives as co-participants. Key Takeaways: 1. Why "show me" outperforms "tell me" in uncovering authentic consumer behavior 2. A practical and inspiring framework for designing immersive research environments at any scale 3. How experiential deliverables and Immersive Research drive insight retention far beyond the deck

Brand trackers are essential but often limited by poor reach, inconsistent data, and unclear outcomes. Latana shows how innovative sampling, modular survey design, and AI-driven analytics create reliable, adaptable tracking. Learn how to reduce fraud, evolve KPIs without losing consistency, and turn complex data into fast, trusted insights. Key Takeaways: 1. How to expand reach and reduce fraud through non-incentivized sampling approaches 2. How modular survey design enables trackers to adapt to new KPls, segments, and brand lists 3. How Al-driven analytics can turn complex tracking data into fast, reliable, and scalable insights

As Agentic AI rises, where does the “Human” fit? Applying the Truth, Beauty, and Justice framework, we map the optimal balance across the research workflow. Through a psychological case study with causal structural modeling, discover why humans remain critical in developing innovation architecture. Walk away with a blueprint for balancing human expertise with high-speed AI. Key Takeaways: 1. Apply “Truth, Beauty, and Justice” evaluation to your own research, AI strategy and tools. 2. Identify which phases of research still need human orchestration vs. AI automation. 3. Learn why complex analytic development still requires humans, using a psychological case study.

Over 90% of new customer products, services, and experiences fail. Why? Because firms only use the customer for passive reaction.  But what if you flipped the script and started with customer inspiration to uncover the job to be done? Learn how Eversouce (New England Utility Firm) used CrowdWeaving from KLC to inspire their communication/messaging efforts.. Key Takeaways: 1. Learn how CrowdWeaving elevates the impact of the insights department. 2. AI tools (asynchronous probing, dynamic summaries, live dashboard) unleashes customer inspiration 3. Engage your internal clients with this gamified, engaging customer inspiration process!

The future of competitive advantage lies in moving from manipulating consumers to inspiring them through emotional resonance. Brands in low emotional-involvement categories often believe inspiration is out of reach. But neuroscience tells us that any brand, in any category, can be inspirational if it knows how to tap into what truly inspires their target audience. Finding that inspiration is the Key Takeaways: 1. The difference between inspiration and manipulation. 2. Why inspiration builds stronger, longer-lasting connections. 3. The four-step thought process consumers follow and where inspiration matters most.

This session will highlight how AI has the power to predict the sales impact of pack designs before launch. Behaviorally and Nestlé demonstrate how linking the world’s largest behavioral packaging dataset to real sales outcomes guides design, aligns teams, and delivers high‑impact, trial‑driving packaging. Key Takeaways: 1. Evaluating more ideas best positions you to identify what works and what doesn’t 2. AI brings speed and scale to evaluate pack concepts, guiding and aligning teams as they refine 3. Choose the right partner to ensure AI is rooted in real consumer behavior and expertise

From Women's Health, to HIV, Rare Diseases, or Cancer, these are conversations that are stigmatized and rarely conducted. In this case study, we reveal new research using voice analysis and AI to enhance human moderation for difficult or stigmatized conversations. This allows us to capture the emotional depth of real patient experiences and detect non-conscious emotional signals in speech, such as tone, pitch, and intensity. We will share learnings from the process of using voice analytics and AI in parallel and in addition to human moderation on these difficult topics, uncovering if and how AI interviews provide an intimate, authentic, and less intrusive format for expression. Three key take aways: 1. How to use AI and voice analytics for better listening 2. Integrating AI and voice analytics as part of the process of accessing unconscious and emotional depth 3. Ways to have honest conversations around difficult or stigmatized issues

Search behaviour has fundamentally shifted...and for a growing number of consumers, the journey now starts with short-form video, not a search bar. We quantified the shift, then dug into the why: what drives trust, what triggers action and when people switch. Join us to explore what this platform-fluid discovery journey means for your brand and research strategy. Key Takeaways: 1. Why TikTok is winning high-intent search moments for speed, visual clarity and authenticity. 2. How consumers navigate a cross-platform trust loop from discovery to decision. 3. What this means for SEO, content strategy and how we should be studying search today.

AI solved fast, scalable research, but humans bring nuance and judgement that are core to insight. Outset is joined by customer, Material+, to share real case studies on what happens when you stop asking "AI or humans?" and start building systems where both do what they do best. Key Takeaways: 1. AI vs. humans is the wrong frame. The real question is who does what — and when. 2. Human judgment isn't the last step anymore. It belongs at every stage. 3. AI made insight abundant. The differentiator now is judgment.

Focus groups deliver deep insights—but scaling them has always been impossible. Until now. Discover how AI transforms large-group research, enabling collection of nuanced insights and meaningful data as hundreds of participants engage, interact, and deliberate. Learn practical methods and see case studies that redefine what’s possible in qualitative research. Key Takeaways: 1. Hyperchat AI makes large-scale qualitative research possible and practical. 2. Learn methods to capture real-time insights from hundreds of participants. 3. See case studies that redefine the quant/qual tradeoff.

Hear how Sky Insights (UK) inform one of the most ambitious research operations in the world, by co-creating Bayes Price’s AI-enhanced insights software “Platinum”. We’re unlocking value, amplifying customer closeness, & improving speed to insight. We’ll share how GenAI outputs are transparent & explainable, and propose a pathway for insight professionals to thrive in an AI-driven future. Key Takeaways: 1. How to stand up for insights! A guide to survive and thrive in an AI-driven future. 2. How to improve speed to insight, unlock value, and scale analysis, whilst maintaining Standards. 3. How to embed transparency and traceability to ensure GenAI outcomes are explainable and trustworthy.

Think your skills are keeping up with what employers want? The insights landscape is changing fast—AI, business impact, and ROI are raising the bar. But candidates and promotion-seekers vs. hiring managers often aren’t aligned. This panel cuts through the noise to reveal what actually makes someone valuable today—and where many are falling short. Key Takeaways: 1. Hear from our panel representing platforms, agencies, independent consultants, and recruiters 2. Learn where candidates and employers are most often misaligned—and why 3. Hear perspectives for what has genuinely changed in the past 12–18 months (and what hasn’t)

Findings from longitudinal study across US, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, exploring GenAlphas, their digital lives and use of AI. Cross analysis with quant survey in US, UK, Mexico, and Spain, to examine AI and AI characters use, attitudes, motivations, etc. regulation awareness and impact on attitudes, motivations, and implications for brands Key Takeaways: 1. Who they are and, online behavior. AI character Creation, Usage and Blend of Utility and Expression 2. Quantitative: Adoption and Dynamics. Identifying gap between current usage and future intention 3. Why this matters for brands and researchers: Navigating Intersection of Innovation, Ethics, and Law

What if the next trillion-dollar advantage isn’t AI, but global talent hiding in plain sight? Frontier Innovations reveals how runway conversations, boardrooms, and the Future Ready Innovators Credential are collapsing the walls between education, work, and community by turning inclusion into the ultimate growth and productivity engine. Key Takeaways: 1. Global post-digital talent is the next competitive advantage; those who activate it first will lead. 2. The walls between education, work, and community are collapsing into a new skills infrastructure. 3. Treat this as seriously as market strategy, not a social program, or risk being left behind.

As LGBTQ+ rights face growing cultural & political challenges, brands face real risk & opportunity with a community holding $1.4T in buying power. Ignoring this audience, or treating queer consumers as a monolith, puts trust & loyalty at risk. Okay Human & Vacation share insights from the Mind Your Business Pride report, revealing what LGBTQ+ consumers expect from brands & what earns their trust. Key Takeaways: 1. Why LGBTQ+ buying power and cultural influence make this audience critical to brand growth 2. What Pride means across generations & communities, and the emotional truths brands must understand 3. How to act on insights responsibly & build lasting, value-driven relationships with LGBTQ+ consumers

In a world of increasingly sophisticated fraud, data trust is under pressure. This session pulls back the curtain on how research firms, brands and sample providers can work together to protect data quality. We’ll share results from testing 5 fraud detection platforms across thousands of completes and make the case for a layered defense strategy. The payoff: decisions you can stand behind. Key Takeaways: 1. Learn how collaborative quality efforts between partners protect your brand 2. See real comparative results across 5 major fraud detection platforms 3. Leave with three questions every insights buyer should ask their providers

In a world of increasingly sophisticated fraud, data trust is under pressure. This session pulls back the curtain on how research firms, brands and sample providers can work together to protect data quality. We’ll share results from testing 5 fraud detection platforms across thousands of completes and make the case for a layered defense strategy. The payoff: decisions you can stand behind. Key Takeaways: 1. Learn how collaborative quality efforts between partners protect your brand 2. See real comparative results across 5 major fraud detection platforms 3. Leave with three questions every insights buyer should ask their providers

Most marketers agree: mental availability drives growth yet few measure it well. Brands win when they come to mind in the right moment. In this eye-opening session, Matt Vicenzi (H&P) and Melissa Garvy (OliPop) will discuss how mapping demand spaces reveals the contexts where brands matter most. And how situational awareness can shift strategy from broad reach to meaningful, context-driven impact. Key Takeaways: 1. Context is King: see how brand associations strengthen when tied to the right demand spaces. 2. Precision Growth Strategy: Target the right demand spaces to fuel smarter brand growth. 3. Smart Measures: Learn how to monitor situational awareness to see when your brand is coming to mind.

The synthetic research conversation has outpaced the evidence. This session closes the gap. Qualtrics' Kayla Schou and Derrick McLean share raw results from synthetic pilots with three enterprise brands—spanning consumer travel, insurance, and digital banking—across three distinct use cases: rapid concept filtering to eliminate non-starters before human validation, insights-first persona segmentation that compresses weeks of analysis into days, and market signal augmentation that reveals trends beyond your existing customer base. Each pilot maps to a practical pattern for where synthetic stands on its own and where human data belongs alongside it. No theoretical frameworks. Just what worked, what didn't, and the decision logic you can apply to your own research questions.

This session introduces the Insight Multiplier, a practical framework for turning siloed consumer, shopper, retail, and business data into decision‑ready intelligence. Learn how integration—and Generative AI as an amplifier—can accelerate insights, improve alignment, and multiply impact. Key Takeaways: 1. Insights stall when data stays siloed - connection drives action. 2. Integrating data streams turns information into strategic advantage. 3. GenAI accelerates insight work, but human judgment remains essential.

When Crunchy Hydration CEO and Founder Megan Riggs was urged to change flavors, can designs, and benefit claims just months after a major redesign, she hesitated. Using Swytchback’s mobile visual surveys, she gained fast, reliable consumer proof – identifying a new flavor that quickly became a bestseller and design updates that reshaped the brand’s trajectory and future growth. Key Takeaways: 1. Learn how brands of any size can access affordable, actionable insights 2. Understand how visual surveys better validate creative decisions with speed and confidence. 3. Apply a rapid insight-to-action process to accelerate product success.

Synthetic personas are disrupting the insights industry and accelerating decision making.  Toluna, Haleon, and Takasago will reveal how AI-generated quant respondents rapidly screen claims, pressure-test innovation, and fuel faster decisions. Hear candid stories, surprising wins, and the new rules for high confidence research powered by a robust combination of artificial and human intelligence. Key Takeaways: 1. How synthetic personas supercharge rapid claims screening at scale. 2. Why strong validation builds confidence across insights teams. 3. Where AI speed meets human judgment for smarter decisions.

Insights teams generate extraordinary intelligence, yet critical decisions often happen without it. Why? Because accessibility, speed, and synthesis remain barriers to activation. In this practical brand-and-tech case study, Albertsons and Stravito share how they transformed Albertson’s “Knowledge Hub” into an enterprise-wide solutions engine. Key Takeaways: 1. Integrate trusted research sources and introduce AI-powered synthesis. 2. Reduce search time by 30% and return 2+ hours per week to more than half of active users. 3. Discover democratizing insights, scaling AI responsibly, and embedding data-informed decision-making

Insights teams generate extraordinary intelligence, yet critical decisions often happen without it. Why? Because accessibility, speed, and synthesis remain barriers to activation. In this practical brand-and-tech case study, Albertsons and Stravito share how they transformed Albertson’s “Knowledge Hub” into an enterprise-wide solutions engine. Key Takeaways: 1. Integrate trusted research sources and introduce AI-powered synthesis. 2. Reduce search time by 30% and return 2+ hours per week to more than half of active users. 3. Discover democratizing insights, scaling AI responsibly, and embedding data-informed decision-making

Can an algorithm feel the culture? AI is transforming market research, but documented studies show it often struggles with African American Vernacular English, cultural nuance, and even emotion recognition on darker skin tones. This session explores where those gaps appear, why they matter for brands engaging Black consumers, and practical steps researchers can take to approach AI with more cultural awareness. Key Takeaways: 1. Spot the Blind Spots: Identify documented ways of how AI misreads Black consumer voices from language to emotion. 2. Understand the Stakes: Learn why missing cultural nuance in AI outputs isn't just bias, it's a business risk. 3. Build Better Practices: Walk away with principles and guardrails for using AI in research responsibly and inclusively.

Behavioral fraud is now the fastest-growing threat to data quality, and it’s beating bots. Fraudsters mimic real respondents, use AI-generated open ends and evade traditional IP, device and geo checks. In this session, examine a real-world case study and learn how behavioral analytics expose what technical defenses miss, especially for hard-to-reach, high-value audiences like Opinion Elites. Key Takeaways: 1. Spot the difference between technical fraud and behavioral deception. 2. Learn how behavioral signals can strengthen your supplier evaluation criteria. 3. Discover how AI can help (and hinder) behavioral fraud detection.

Most brands settle for a spike in awareness after an Olympics investment, Saatva isn’t most brands. Join quantilope and Saatva to see why traditional tracking is only half the story. Explore how CEPs and Mental Availability transformed Saatva’s “Restorative Sleep" objectives into a data-driven blueprint for market share. See how a challenger brand strengthens its positioning and scales with speed. Key Takeaways: 1. Move Beyond Awareness: Learn why traditional tracking is only half the story for major brands. 2. Science of Scale: Master Category Entry Points (CEPs) and Mental Availability to grow market share. 3. The Challenger Blueprint: See how Saatva uses data to strengthen positioning in a fast market.

After reviewing fifty-seven real-world use cases for Synthetic Data Systems, we developed a clear and practical way to describe how these systems work and how their quality can be evaluated. Too often, synthetic data is discussed in vague terms, relying on broad claims about realism or accuracy. Our taxonomy organizes Synthetic Data Systems into clear layers based on the types of outputs they produce, and the checks used to ensure those outputs are reliable. This structure helps providers, customers, and the wider industry assess synthetic data in consistent, comparable ways that reflect how it is actually used to support decisions. The Modeled Answers and Insights layer delivers summarized conclusions directly to stakeholders, without requiring access to individual respondent data. The quality of these outputs depends on how well the underlying data is balanced and complete, and on whether the study design assumptions are realistic. When these controls are applied correctly, modeled insights remain credible and transparent, and clearly communicate uncertainty rather than masking it behind precise-looking numbers. The Optimized Survey and Instrument layer focuses on improving how studies are designed before they go into the field. It produces guidance on feasibility, structure, and configuration to help ensure surveys can be executed as planned. Quality controls at this layer ensure that recommendations reflect real respondent behavior and operational limits, reducing the risk of designs that look good in theory but fail in practice. The Decision Intelligence Layer brings together analysis-ready synthetic data with modeled trends and projections. This is the main layer used for analysis, reporting, and decision support. Quality controls here focus on making sure the data fairly represents the intended population and is not distorted by gaps or imbalances. By addressing these issues early, this layer helps ensure that downstream analyses and decisions are based on a solid and trustworthy foundation.

When products don’t fit neatly into existing categories, traditional research approaches can fall short. This session walks through a blended study design that combined qual exploration, quant validation, and real-world, in-context testing to evaluate an alternative pasta concept. The case illustrates how adapting methods to the category itself can uncover the right insights for success. Key Takeaways: 1. Learn how a 3-phase study blended qual, quant, & live cooking to assess Better For You pasta demand 2. Understand how taste, texture, protein, and carbs shape pasta choice and guide product decisions 3. See how in-person cooking events delivered real-time feedback and deeper insight into product use

Insights professionals have long delivered critical intelligence, yet their impact has often ended at the point of delivery. The Decision Engineer represents an evolution in the role, where AI supports execution and researchers focus on connecting insights to strategy, translating consumer understanding into action, and shaping decisions that advance organizations.  Key Takeaways: 1. Your new job isn't to find the insight — it's to engineer the decision.  2. Intelligence without activation is just trivia.  3. The tools changed. The stakes got higher. 

AI has transformed qualitative research, but structured, statistical data remains hard to democratise. This session shows how JAB Pet Services enabled teams to talk to complex quant data safely and accurately, using expert-grade automation and LLM-ready outputs. A practical case study in scaling access without sacrificing rigour. Key Takeaways: 1. Why most AI struggles with quant data, and how JAB approached it 2. What it takes to widen access to quant insights without losing rigour 3. How insight delivery choices shape who can actually use the data

In an era of AI experimentation and uneven ROI, Lilly’s research innovators and IA Collaborative built one of the company’s most impactful AI platforms — an AI ecosystem of tools designed to augment insight. Discover how AI workflows delivered on hard metrics — elevating researchers’ role with executives and establishing them as trusted AI guides. Key Takeaways: 1. Understand how AI elevated researchers’ strategic influence & led to a seat at the executive table. 2. Learn how to turn AI skepticism into enthusiasm through purposeful workflow integration. 3. Discuss hard-won lessons on scaling AI solutions responsibly across complex organizations.

In a world where we have so much data and information at our fingertips, we need to remember that true insight doesn't come from reports or data alone, it comes from empathy and human insights. In this session will talk about how building the empathy muscle is essential for market researchers and their cross-functional partners, and how stepping outside our bubbles leads to deeper consumer connection and better innovation.   Key Takeaways: 1. Why empathy matters: Understand the limits of reports, presentations, and even AI in capturing real human truths. Remind people of the bubbles we (and our cross-functional partners live in) and why we need to make a conscious effort to bring empathy into decision making. 2. How to build empathy muscles: We will share practical ways for market researchers and their cross functional partners to build their empathy muscles.  We will share examples of ways we have gotten people out of their bubbles (at Campbell's and beyond) and connect with consumers and suggestions for when/how to incorporate empathy into their work.

Scotts Miracle-Gro faced overwhelming volumes of qualitative data across surveys, reviews, and service interactions. After testing multiple AI tools, the team chose Panoplai for its human-like coding quality and intuitive interface. Today, teams analyze over 50 datasets annually to generate faster, more consistent insights faster. Key Takeaways: 1. A practical framework for scaling qualitative analysis with AI—without sacrificing rigor 2. What makes AI-generated insights credible, repeatable, and usable 3. Why intuitive UI/UX is critical to adoption and impact of AI in insights teams

AI can analyze research faster than any team in history. It can even simulate consumers. But when companies start replacing human research with synthetic insight, something dangerous happens. The strange behaviors, contradictions, and surprises that spark breakthrough ideas disappear. Insights start averaging out and the edges vanish.

The Ready-To-Drink beverage category is a crowded space, and consumers are rewriting the rules for the different functional and emotional roles these beverages play in their daily lives. To truly understand consumers’ RTD beverage habits, preferences, needs, and offer innovative solutions, brands require a research methodology that is as dynamic as the consumers themselves. Want to replicate this success? This presentation outlines a proven framework for decoding these shifting behaviors. By blending innovation with targeted consumer research including qualitative in-home ethnographies with robust quantitative concept evaluation we provide a blueprint for success. Attendees will walk away with actionable strategies to unlock deep insights and connect with today’s RTD drinker on a meaningful level.

The Lovechild of Empathy and Accessibility, Convenience is the gift of mental space in a crowded world. Brands focused on satisfying experiences bring an ease to customers that is repaid through brand loyalty. Key Takeaways: 1. Convenience calms the nervous system, helping customers feel seen & valued with every interaction. 2. Brands that prioritize convenience build customer loyalty that can withstand turbulent times. 3. Too much convenience can be a slippery slope i.e. social media, sports betting, and tap to pay.

The synthetic research market has exploded—over $1.5B in venture funding, a dozen platforms with compelling demos, and no shortage of impressive-sounding accuracy stats. But how do you separate research-grade tools from confident noise? In this session, Derrick McLean from Qualtrics cuts through the performance claims and evaluation frameworks that have been flooding the market—breaking down what's worth paying attention to and what's not. You'll learn what questions to ask any synthetic vendor about model training, validation methodology, and being a good AI partner. Derrick opens the hood on how Qualtrics' synthetic model is built: the research-grade data that trains it and the validation that proves it. Come skeptical. Leave equipped.

Founders lead with passion. Researchers lead with data. Trouble starts when the two don’t agree. When testing challenges a brand’s mission, most teams hear “no.” We heard something else. By looking beyond the obvious results, we uncovered a different story—one that helped a Buckwheat Milk founder move from Whole Foods to Shark Tank and beyond, sparking a new, insights-led approach to innovation. Key Takeaways: 1. Decisions based solely on passion are risky, but so are cold, data-only decisions. Harness both! 2. When the data doesn’t go the way you’d hoped, listen. But don’t shelve it and move on too quickly. 3. Behavioral insights unlock human stories hidden deep inside the data and lead to real innovation.

Enlyta’s AI Data Assistant lets you ask any question about your data—from “what’s shifted this wave?” to generating charts on the fly. Combined with AI Story Drafting, it turns complex reports into shareable narratives, so insight teams spend less time chasing data and more time creating impact. Key Takeaways: 1. Ask AI any question. Get instant answers without dashboard hunting 2. Generate charts and summaries directly from respondent-level data 3. Turn reports into shareable insight stories in minutes, not hours

In our fast-moving, AI-powered industry, the human instincts behind great research are at risk. As speed and automation increase, depth, judgment, and intentionality can erode. This session explores how to recalibrate through a fresh perspective on foundational skills that cut through noise, improve decision-making, and create more thoughtful, future-ready insights. Key Takeaways: 1. Reevaluate the foundational skills that matter most in modern research. 2. Strengthen judgment and decision-making in high-speed environments. 3. Build a more intentional, future-ready approach to insights.

As budgets tighten and AI accelerates product cycles, the insights industry faces a crisis: evolve or be bypassed.  Digital twins and synthetic audiences offer speed and scale, but they risk automating bias if trained on flawed data. Can we maintain human truth at machine velocity? Join our panel to discuss the ethics, governance, and future of research in an AI-driven world. Key Takeaways: 1. Research must match AI’s speed to remain relevant in shrinking decision cycles. 2. What a "hybrid future" means for the research industry: the pros and the cons. 3. The new frameworks and guardrails needed to balance machine efficiency with human authenticity.

Can audience segmentation change the course of history? We share key findings from an 8-country segmentation with International Justice Mission, a global organization protecting people in poverty from violence, human trafficking, and modern slavery. Described by IJM’s CMO as “groundbreaking,” we combined workshops, cognitive interviews, local staff training, and a proprietary 5-segment solution. Key Takeaways: 1. Target donor segments using conscious and unconscious motivations. 2. Identify who to engage, let go, and where efforts have most impact. 3. Activate segmentation across marketing, product, program, and field teams.

Protein is everywhere, but winning isn't. Whether you're eating protein, selling protein, or just trying to figure out why everything suddenly has protein in it, this session is for you. Think of it as a behind-the-scenes look at how we're placing our chips, reading the table, and deciding where to go "all in". Key Takeaways: 1. Understand how the protein category is evolving 2. Take a look at the bets being placed across the portfolio 3. Learn what it takes to stand out and convert in a crowded space.

We are at a pivotal moment. As AI accelerates workflows, compresses timelines, and reshapes expectations, technical skill alone is no longer enough. The future will be defined by those willing to challenge legacy thinking, embrace experimentation, and prioritize impact over comfort. This session explores how professional bravery—not just innovation—will determine who leads the next era. Key Takeaways: 1. Let go of outdated methods, identities, and assumptions that no longer serve modern insight work. 2. Explore how to use AI as a strategic accelerator rather than a shortcut. 3. Leave with a renewed framework for making bold, future-forward decisions.

AI can generate more ideas than teams can evaluate. The real challenge isn’t ideation—it’s deciding what’s worth pursuing. In this live demo, we’ll demonstrate how to guide AI-driven innovation from ideas to action. You’ll see a real-time workflow that blends AI speed with human judgment to focus ideation, support clearer decisions, and avoid mistaking volume for value. What you’ll learn: Key Takeaways: 1. How to structure AI ideation to prevent idea overload 2. Where human expertise matters most in an AI-centered process 3. How to move fast without sacrificing strategy

Decoding the modern path to purchase requires new tools & approaches. In a multimodal study with Uber Eats, Alter Agents combined large-scale quant with mobile ethnographies to uncover how consumers navigate restaurant decisions across delivery, takeout & dine-in. Learn what the research uncovered - and how innovative methodologies can surface actionable insights in a fast, emotional category. Key Takeaways: 1. Learn how multimodal research can capture both the scale and nuance of consumer decision-making 2. See how path-to-purchase mapping applies to the restaurant space, highlighting two distinct journeys 3. Understand why considering platforms as full-funnel influencers changes how we design research

AI can accelerate qualitative research, but speed alone doesn’t create insight. In this live demo, see how DoReveal helps researchers apply proven analysis frameworks with a researcher-first approach to uncover deeper, more defensible insights. Trusted by 100+ agencies and Fortune 100 teams. Key Takeaway: 1. AI presents a unique opportunity to learn and apply advanced qualitative analysis techniques 2. Combined with AI with proven qualitative methods leads to more defensible, high-quality insights 3. Researcher-first, purpose-built platforms outperform generic AI

Faster surveys. Automated analysis. Synthetic respondents. The industry is racing to build a more efficient version of the function that's already losing budget faster than any other marketing category. Efficiency AI doesn't solve the respect problem. It deepens it. This session makes the case for a different bet — and a different identity. Behavioral AI, built on a validated framework for how humans actually decide. Key Takeaways:  1. Why the profession's AI investments are accelerating the decline they're meant to reverse 2. What behavioral designers do that insights professionals don't — and why that distinction determines who survives the next budget cut 3. How behavioral AI makes the right identity finally scalable — and what claiming that identity actually looks like in practice

When ~80% of new products fail, the cost of poor data is too high, eroding trust, customer experience & profitability. The industry is at a crossroads: continue relying on flawed survey methods & risk irrelevance or evolve toward verified communities of real people. Triaging bad data after the fact is no longer enough. The future of retail demands more because we can’t afford to get it wrong. Key Takeaways: 1. Discover how verified, rewarded communities drive higher-quality data and engagement. 2. Learn how proactive fraud prevention ensures superior data quality and builds trust. 3. See how we used Data Quality Coop’s segmentation to set a new standard for actionable insights.

A practical look at where AI helps in respondent recruitment. And where human expertise still makes all the difference Key Takeaways: 1. AI is your assistant, not your final answer 2. Respondent phone screen is our superpower 3. The best teams don't choose AI or human. They choose both

Join three of Greenbook’s 2026 Future List Honorees from LATAM for a conversation on the future of insights leadership across the region. As rising voices in the industry, they will share how they are navigating diverse markets, bringing greater cultural and business nuance to their work, and helping redefine the role of insights in fast-changing environments. Attendees will hear firsthand what global audiences often overlook about LATAM — and where these emerging leaders see the greatest opportunities ahead. Key Takeaways: 1. Better understand the complexity, diversity, and strategic importance of the LATAM market research and insights landscape. 2. Hear how Future List Honorees in the region are shaping the future of insights through leadership, innovation, and influence. 3. Gain fresh perspective on how insights leaders are navigating nuance, opportunity, and change across LATAM.

Dashboards promised clarity. But in 2026, they’re often one of the biggest barriers to insight. Executives don’t need more charts; they need fewer blind spots. Learn the 5 signs your company is stuck in the dashboard era, and what how to move to what replaces it: autonomous, predictive, conversational insight systems that surface what matters before it hits the P&L. Key Takeaways: 1. Why dashboards create blind spots that actually hide what's changing now 2. The “5 signs” framework to diagnose dashboard-era maturity and prioritize what to fix first 3. What’s next: autonomous, predictive, conversational systems that shifts reporting to decision making

IFF applied Claira(tm), an AI-powered platform, to develop new snacks designed for GLP-1 users. Attendees will learn how to design products for behavioral impact, decoding real, unprompted consumer stories to uncover hidden tensions.  This human in the loop approach to innovation resulted in products designed to achieve behavioral impact by aligning with both emotional and functional needs. Key Takeaways: 1. How to apply Agentic AI to design products for behavioral impact 2. How to tell better stories from research results 3. How to lead with insights to discover new innovation opportunities

Advertising has shifted from a few big bets to continuous, high-frequency decision-making across channels—yet insights hasn’t kept pace. This session explores how AI, synthetic data, and hybrid approaches are reshaping how teams validate creative at speed, enabling faster, more confident decisions across the campaign lifecycle. Key Takeaways: 1. Why high-frequency decisioning breaks traditional insights models 2. How AI + synthetic data enable faster, scalable validation 3. A hybrid model: combining human and synthetic for better decisions

In this tech demo, Dialogue showcases how AI-powered moderation helps researchers scale qualitative insights without sacrificing rigor or nuance. See how automated moderation enables real-time probing, adaptive follow-ups, and consistent respondent experiences—unlocking faster, deeper insights across large samples. Key Takeaways: 1. How teams have used—and how you can use—Dialogue in practice 2. How insights teams can move faster with less operational overhead 3. How AI moderation enables scale while preserving rigor and nuance

In a market full of AI moderated solutions, foundational research that actually moves businesses forward is still deeply human, and what determines which brands truly understand their consumers and which only think they do.  Studio by buzzback is transforming what teams can achieve by putting depth, diversity, and caliber of expert talent that drives great research right at their fingertips. Key Takeaways: 1. How a marketplace model removes the friction that has traditionally limited qual 2. How teams go from RFP to insights in days using Studio's end-to-end workflow 3. Agility without sacrifice: what it looks like when speed and rigor aren't in conflict

AI changes everything when prospects search for things to buy. SEO’s impact is waning, as we have entered the age of "zero-click search". Your customers may never come to your website before making a buying choice. Where your brand story gets told in this new world makes all the difference. You must appear in the trusted sources AI systems rely on, to be discovered, evaluated, verified and chosen. Key Takeaways: 1. Learn how “zero-click search” and the new rules of LLMs should inform your marketing strategies 2. Discover the metrics that no longer matter in the quest to add, influence and convert customers 3. Uncover your hidden assets that “zero-click search” will leverage, IF delivered by a trusted source

It’s never been easier to create, but it's harder to create well. As output grows, quality is slipping, widening the gap between what gets built and what actually resonates with people. In this fireside chat, Bloomberg’s Arty Rivera brings a perspective shaped by years of applying human-centered design not just to products, but to how organizations make decisions. His work goes beyond usability, digging into the emotional drivers behind everyday behaviors and helping teams connect what they build to what people actually need in the moments that matter. Together, we’ll explore what it takes to raise the bar: moving past volume and velocity to design experiences grounded in real human context. We will also examine why the ability to think critically about people, not just outputs, is becoming the difference between noise and meaningful impact.

Learn the research framework Docusign’s market strategy and monetization team uses to answer product’s questions and drive decision-making. By correctly defining the core business question and decision-making criteria upfront, we can help ensure you’re able to answer the critical 'So, what do we actually do with this?' for product teams. Key Takeaways: 1. Learn what leaders are really asking for and how to design research to unlock easy decision making. 2. Design studies that get used and directly support roadmap decisions, pricing strategies, and launche 3. Become a partner to Product that gets consulted before decisions are made.

Back, by popular demand! This panel of clients is an unfiltered conversation about what it takes to build partnerships that last. Expect candid views on client challenges, trust, and what you can do differently to show up as genuine strategic partners, not just another outreach in the inbox.  This session will leave you with practical, honest takeaways straight from the people whose opinion matters most. Key Takeaways: 1. Hear directly from end-clients on how they find and start relationships with a new partner. 2. Understand client challenges and how you can support them. 3. Leave with strategies to stand out from the competition.

How a 56 year old legacy non-profit balances data and creativity to drive brand reach and relevance with today’s Gen Alpha viewers and Gen Z and Millennial fans and parents. Key Takeaways: 1. Don't discount the importance of stakeholder buy-in 2. Creating engaging expressions of a brand for multiple audiences is hard but possible 3. Selecting the right data to inform the right questions is key

As budgets and teams get smaller, but the demand for insight grows across the organization, how can you adapt to the changing times? In this case study, HelloFresh speaks to the challenges many marketing and insights teams face around budget cuts and capacity crunches and highlights practical ways to solve these shared pain points via AI-powered insights.  Conor will share advice on how to bridge the gap between marketing and insights teams, how to execute custom research with agility and how to improve stakeholder buy-in to inform decision-making across the organization on a daily basis. Key Takeaways: 1. How to introduce AI-powered insights without increasing cost or impacting quality. 2. How to improve buy-in with clear and meaningful insights from a stakeholder's perspective.  3. How to bridge the gap between marketing and insights teams to achieve cross-functional clarity and insight-led decision-making across the organization. 

Using insights from 50M+ survey clicks, this session demystifies “normal” mobile app fraud. Learn how fraud rates vary by app and geography, the signals used to detect abuse, and proven heuristics for identifying and partnering with high-quality mobile sources. Key Takeaways: 1. Average Fraud Rates for Mobile Apps: We’ll answer the question “What is normal for panel quality?” W 2. Underlying signals used to catch fraud: Attendees will learn about the signals that these “normal” f 3. How to fight back: We’ll provide practical advice for selecting good mobile app partners based on he

The project-based research model isn't just slow—it's structurally mismatched to how organizations make decisions. Qualtrics market research COE leaders Ellen Houston and Emily Currie show what it takes to operationalize the shift from research-as-service to research-as-infrastructure. They'll introduce a governance model for deciding what your team should own, partner on, enable, and experiment with—then map it to the technology layer making it real: autonomous agents that handle study design and execution, synthetic capabilities that deliver speed and scale without sacrificing rigor, and a unified platform that consolidates quant and qual across MR, UX, product, and brand research under one roof. You'll leave with a framework for redesigning your operating model and a clear view of the tools entering the market to support it.

In today’s crowded “better-for-you” beverage landscape, innovation often outpaces consumer relevance. This session examines how Edelman, in partnership with Remesh, deployed a rapid, AI-powered research program to identify what truly resonates with health-conscious consumers. The session outlines a structured, four-phase approach that delivered both scale and depth within a compressed timeline. Key Takeaways: 1. How AI-powered research accelerates decision-making while preserving methodological rigor 2. Why consumer language is essential, showing the need for human-led research vs synthetic personas 3.  A framework for generating agile insights—progressing from discovery to validated claims quickly

Join Hormel’s Dave Anderko and Market Logic’s Joseph Rini for a discussion on how Hormel is reshaping their consumer insights’ function. From interacting with synthetic customer personas to identifying demand space opportunities, this session will offer a look at how Hormel is currently implementing AI that adds real value to their innovation processes for marketers, product teams, and more. Key Takeaways: 1. Current Hormel use cases for synthetic personas, gen-AI powered research, and more 2. The opportunities and risks to consider when leveraging AI in research workflows 3. How to build and scale new AI tools effectively across business units

Most CPG innovation is validated through the lens of insights teams—but it succeeds or fails through the reality of retailers. This session reframes innovation through what buyers actually see on the shelf: why so many “proven” ideas don’t translate in-store, how retail evaluates risk, and how insight methodologies can improve when real shoppers must make real choices. Key Takeaways: 1. Understand innovation through the retailer’s eyes—and where insights can make the biggest impact 2. Clarify the insights that retailers value, and how it aligns everyone around one shared truth. 3. Create a roadmap on how to de-risk bold bets and turn disruptive ideas into lasting wins.

Drawing inspiration from both business strategy and military leadership principles, this session explores the transformative power of ownership, and challenges research professionals to stop reacting to their circumstances and reclaim agency over their professional future. This session provides the roadmap to stop wondering what happened to your career and start making things happen. Key Takeaways: 1. Owning your career means proactively crafting and living your personal mission, not just reacting. 2. Growth is a choice—concrete strategies can help sustain it, even in challenging environments. 3. Collaboration, accountability, and self-assessment enable success regardless of circumstances.

Recent Research-on-Research analysis shows nearly 70% of consumers misreport purchase frequency, spend per trip, units per trip, and more—raising questions about the reliability of recall-based surveys. Join Numerator’s Michelle Pichman and David Aronson as they review findings from the Consumer Say-Do Gap study and examine how verified purchase data compares to recall-based approaches. Key Takeaways: 1. Understand the limitations of recall-based data and its impact on category insights. 2. Review research evidence showing how often consumers misreport purchase behavior. 3. Compare recall-based and verified buyer data and how each affects decisions.

The oldest problem in market research is the say-do gap. For forty years we have patched it with better survey design, better incentives, and longer diaries. None of it closes. Computer vision models are the first scalable instrument we have that can actually narrow the gap, but only if researchers use them for interpretation and not just detection. Key Takeaways: 1. Vision closes the say-do gap, but only if you use it for interpretation, not just detection. 2. The next frontier is vision from inside the subject, not just vision of the subject. 3. World models are coming. The quality of inputs will determine the quality of the research.

Ducati prelaunched the Desmo and asked riders to put down a refundable deposit, separating real intent from casual hype. Then we listened closely to those who committed and those who walked away. The result was a few surprising truths about who wanted it, what mattered most, and how the launch story changed. Key Takeaways: 1. Real commitment revealed intent better than survey excitement. 2. The most serious buyers were not who we expected. 3. Early buyer signals reshaped product priorities and launch story.

Dave, Stan & Stephen will explore the important and enduring role human emotions play for brands. They’ll discuss the latest research tools and techniques that generate the most effective insights into human emotions and what you can do with them. And they will look into the future and reveal their predictions of what’s going to change vs stay constant for researchers in a world dominated by AI Key Takeaways: 1. Deeper understanding of why human emotions matter most for brands 2. Practical research tools and techniques to help uncover insights into human emotions 3. Predictions of changes and constants for researchers of human emotions and so where to focus effort

Key Takeaways: 1. At public institutions, the departments that lead the organization are often not consumer-centric. 2. Biases toward quantitative, historical data direct attention away from current causes and effects. 3. To effect positive change, we must recognize such biases and learn how to tackle them.

Change how you make innovation decisions by scaling your intuition and validating it with behavioral science. Facing pressure to rapidly launch profitable new products, La Brea Bakery worked with a dream team of research partners to overcome the Innovator’s Paradox with human insights grounded in reality instead of the usual polite fictions. Learn how they did it and how you can too. Key Takeaways: 1. Do away with focus groups + surveys and get real with raw digital truths and actual buying behavior. 2. Use a psychic satellite to detect million-dollar consumer friction points no standard tool can see. 3. De-risk your decisions with behavioral auctions that show you real consumer demand for new products.

We report how worlds largest sports association double engagement with a method that multiplies growth impact of AI Key Takeaways: 1. AI only generates growth if you ask the right questions 2. This new standardized scientific process can surface intuitive truth that the subconsciousness alrea 3. A quantitative Causal AI study validated the enormous power this has

We often fix consumer bias but forget our own. This quick, engaging talk reveals how our brains secretly shape what we “see” in the data - from confirmation bias to social proof heuristic - and offers simple ways to catch ourselves before our instincts shape the story. Key Takeaways: 1. Spot the secret biases shaping your “objective” insights. 2. Learn simple ways to catch your brain in the act. 3. Leave with bias proofing habits for more authentic insights.

You’re likely already paying for AI & research technology, but how do you define what you’re actually getting back from the investments? This session takes a candid look at how leading teams move past experimentation, simplify bloated tech stacks, & improve ROI across speed, quality, utilization, & outcomes—while making smarter operating decisions in the face of tight budgets & rising expectations Key Takeaways: 1. How leading teams define and measure ROI when AI and research tech become table stakes 2. Ways to drive real adoption without slowing teams down or forcing change that doesn’t stick 3. How to handle budget, timeline, and ROI pressure while delivering faster, quality insights

As AI becomes the interface to organizational knowledge, research no longer informs one decision; it feeds systems shaping thousands. Yet AI cannot judge nuance, detect bias, or question methodology. This session reframes researchers as the conscience of AI, ensuring data is real, representative, and trustworthy, and that AI learns from the right answers. Key Takeaways:  1. Reframe your role from data provider to trust infrastructure in an AI-driven org. 2. Rigor, representativeness, and bias control are what AI lacks. Turn that into influence. 3. Leave with mindset shifts to keep MR relevant, influential, and irreplaceable in AI.

Measurement determines what gets valued, optimized, and scaled. In this session, Jim Ballas from Magellan AI and Brent Lightfoot from iHeartMedia show how new measurement signals are bringing audio into parity with display, CTV, and digital video. Learn how the latest attribution innovations let buyers evaluate podcasts, streaming, and broadcast radio using the same standards across the media mix. Key Takeaways: 1. Understand how modern attribution puts audio on equal footing with digital 2. Explore how podcasts, streaming, and radio are now measurable side by side 3. Gain insight into how better standards unlock audio's true impact