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Episode Summary: AI, Innovation, and Market Research Trends (June 6–12, 2025)
AI and Tech Innovations in Market Research
- Kantar’s “Live” Qual-Quant Platform: Kantar announced the global rollout of its Kantar Live research platform to 45 markets, offering “qualitative research at quantitative scale” through real-time moderated sessions. Developed in China, Kantar Live blends live polling with in-depth discussion, AI-powered analysis, and expert moderation to deliver both speed and depth. Will Galgey, Kantar’s Global MD of Solutions & Platforms, called it a “natural evolution” that combines qualitative insight with quantitative scale using AI-enhanced hybrid approaches.
- AI-Powered Data Quality Control: Seattle-based Research For Good (RFG) launched QuIP (Quality Interception Point), an AI-driven quality control solution to improve respondent quality in surveys and even refine datasets for AI training. QuIP uses advanced algorithms and “respondent persona” modeling to intercept low-quality responses and ensure cleaner, higher-quality data, with RFG reporting data rejection rates several times lower than industry norms. RFG President Rich Silva says QuIP harnesses AI and persona-based insights to tackle a critical data quality challenge across market research and LLM training.
- Dynamic Audience Profiling with AI: Cognitiv, a consumer behavior analytics firm, debuted “AI Personas” – a feature using real-time behavior data to create dynamic audience profiles that continuously optimize targeting. Meanwhile, qual tech company Bolt Insight enhanced its BoltChatAI platform with new Dynamic Personas and Meta-Analysis tools, blending conversational AI with human expertise. These features let researchers build evolving consumer personas (updated with incoming survey and interview data) and automatically analyze past qual & quant findings for trends over time. Hakan Yurdakul, Bolt’s CEO, says this approach “compounds brand intelligence and insight” with each study and cuts analysis time from days to minutes by leveraging AI.
- E-Commerce Insights Platform Upgrades: PriceSpider, a commerce analytics firm, upgraded its Shoppable and Price Monitoring suite to give brands deeper path-to-purchase insights and control. The update added integrations with DoorDash, Meta, and Salsify, plus a new Custom Commerce API for more personalized shoppable experiences. The company also previewed Q3 launches – including a real-time Traffic Benchmarking dashboard and Basket Analytics to understand post-click shopper behavior – as it aims to scale its retail intelligence capabilities globally. Anthony Ferry, PriceSpider’s CEO, noted that with factors like tariffs and the rising influence of AI complicating commerce, brands need more actionable insights and automation at scale, which these innovations will provide.
Partnerships, Mergers, and Acquisitions
- Retail Media M&A: Independent ad tech agency PMG (Dallas) acquired Momentum Commerce, a retail media intelligence firm known for its marketplace data platform “Velocity.” Momentum’s platform tracks tens of millions of products and hundreds of thousands of brands across Amazon, Walmart, Target and other retailers, delivering AI-driven insights on pricing and category performance. PMG will integrate Momentum’s 45-person team and tech into its offerings. CEO George Popstefanov said the acquisition accelerates PMG’s vision by combining Momentum’s “world-class talent [and] proprietary tech” with PMG’s capabilities to turn real-time retail signals into growth outcomes for brands. Momentum’s founder John T. Shea will take a leadership role at PMG, heading a new Commerce Center of Excellence.
- Cross-Platform Audience Measurement Alliance: Copenhagen-based AudienceProject partnered with RTL AdAlliance – the international advertising sales unit of RTL Group – to improve cross-media audience targeting in Europe. The collaboration introduces an “Audience Guarantee” product in the Nordics, leveraging AudienceProject’s measurement tech to provide robust campaign reach metrics (including previously hard-to-measure CTV streaming audiences) alongside RTL’s traditional TV inventory. Halvard Kristiansen, MD Nordics at RTL AdAlliance, said that after evaluating many partners they chose AudienceProject for its innovative approach – enabling effective measurement and optimization of campaigns toward specific target groups, even on connected TV – thereby helping advertisers balance traditional TV reach with digital precision.
- LoopMe & Acxiom Data Partnership: LoopMe, a UK-based adtech and insights company, announced a tie-up with data giant Acxiom to integrate LoopMe’s survey-based Audience & Measurement Platform (AMP) with Acxiom’s consumer data for building custom marketing audiences. The partnership allows advertisers (including clients of IPG’s agencies, Acxiom’s parent company) to create bespoke “high intent” segments derived from real-time survey responses, which LoopMe’s AI then scales and activates across ad platforms. Rob Cukierman, LoopMe’s CPO, noted that with ROI under scrutiny, the collaboration will let brands reach more precisely targeted segments – combining Acxiom’s rich data with LoopMe’s AI-driven surveys for improved targeting and performance.
- $17M for AI-Moderated Research Startup: Outset, a San Francisco-based AI research platform, secured $17 million in Series A funding led by venture firm 8VC. Outset’s platform uses AI “moderators” to conduct and summarize large-scale video interviews, delivering the speed and scale of survey research with the qualitative depth of one-on-one interviews. The tool lets users input discussion guides or stimuli and then automatically engages thousands of participants via video, integrating results in real time. Co-founder and CEO Aaron Cannon says their AI agents can “talk to thousands of people at speed, scale and depth,” reducing barriers to insights by gathering rich customer feedback globally (in any language or time zone) with minimal human facilitation. The new funding will be used to expand Outset’s team and product capabilities amid rapid growth.
Industry Leadership & Organizational Changes
- WPP CEO Transition: Mark Read, Chief Executive of advertising group WPP, announced he will step down from the role (and from WPP’s Board) on December 31, 2025. Read has spent over 30 years at WPP and served as CEO for the past seven years, overseeing a major simplification of the company’s structure and a push into data and AI offerings. WPP’s Board has begun searching for a successor, and Chairman Philip Jansen thanked Read for transforming WPP into a “world leader in modern marketing services, with deep AI, data and technology capabilities” during his tenure. Read will remain CEO through year-end to ensure a smooth transition.
- Kantar Names Americas CEO: Kantar appointed Jeff Greenspoon as CEO for the Americas, effective August 4. Greenspoon is a former Dentsu International executive who led global client solutions and innovation there, and he joins Kantar with a remit to drive growth across North and South America. He will report to Kantar’s Global CEO Chris Jansen and join the Group Executive Team. Greenspoon succeeds Wayne Levings, who had been overseeing Kantar’s Americas business on an interim basis and will now return to his full-time role as Chief Client Officer. Jansen said Greenspoon’s mix of entrepreneurship, marketing strategy, and team-building experience makes him an ideal fit to accelerate Kantar’s business in the region.
- Zeta Global Co-Founder Retires: John Sculley – the 86-year-old co-founder and Vice Chairman of marketing cloud firm Zeta Global – retired from the company and its Board. Sculley, a former Apple CEO and Pepsi president, co-founded Zeta in 2007 with CEO David Steinberg. The company announced Sculley’s retirement at its June 10 annual meeting; he will assume the honorary title of Vice Chairman Emeritus and continue to advise the leadership team. Steinberg praised Sculley as more than a co-founder – “a true partner and source of enduring inspiration” – crediting Sculley’s vision and leadership for helping shape Zeta over 17 years.
- New UK Lead at Merkle (Dentsu): Customer experience agency Merkle (part of Dentsu) appointed Chris Freeland as CEO for the UK & Ireland. Freeland, a seasoned ad agency executive and former CEO of RAPP UK, takes over the UK&I helm from Anne Stagg, who left to join Digitas. In his new role, Freeland will guide Merkle’s strategy in delivering data-driven, personalized customer experiences for clients in the region. The appointment fills a leadership gap since Stagg’s departure and brings an experienced hand to lead Merkle’s next phase of growth in the UK market.
- Human8 Bolsters APAC Team: Global insights consultancy Human8 made three senior hires in Asia-Pacific to support its growth in the region. Sharanya Sitaraman (former Quantum Consumer Solutions MD) was named APAC Head of Qualitative & Culture; Jason Spencer (former Kantar Hong Kong MD) joined as Head of China; and Colin Wong (a digital insights specialist and ex-Dynata) became APAC Customer Success Director. Human8 – which specializes in insight communities and AI-enabled research – said the new leaders each bring 20+ years’ experience. APAC MD Maz Amirahmadi commented that their combined expertise in qualitative research, cultural insight, and client success will be instrumental in driving Human8’s continued growth and innovation across the region, and will help amplify the power of its AI-powered online community platforms.
Expert Insights & Thought Leadership
- Closing the Insight–Creative Gap: In a forward-looking Cannes Lions op-ed, insights strategist Alex Holmes urged better collaboration between research teams and creative marketers. Citing a new “State of Creativity” report, Holmes notes that 51% of advertising creatives admit their ability to leverage consumer insights is poor, highlighting a disconnect where data isn’t fully informing creative work. He argues that researchers and agencies need to work in tandem – aligning on the brand’s core objectives and even spending time together experiencing real consumer environments – to ensure insights truly shape creative strategy rather than being an afterthought. By breaking down silos and acknowledging biases, both disciplines can produce advertising that is more resonant and evidence-driven, effectively bridging the gap between big data and big ideas.