Presentation and Speakers

INSIDE THE KIMONO
The true broader impact of AI on various industries so far…plus what evolutions we can anticipate next

By Neil Mann, Founder, Future Horizon

All about the hype train! In this presentation, we’ll cut through the froth and the foam about all things AI and look at what really “is” today rather than what “could be”. We will unpack the example of a financial services firm that invested significantly into Gen AI during 2024…but realised little tangible value. We will examine irrational exuberance, dispelling some marketing myths as we go. Getting practical, we will deliver insight as to what organisations must do moving forward to ensure that they are investing wisely and pragmatically rather than being motivated by the fear of missing out (FOMO).

Neil is a seasoned Futurist, focused on providing independent insight to senior business leaders on the potential impact of the latest frontier and emerging technologies. He is a specialist in Strategic Foresight – charting a course for future growth and long-term prosperity. Neil is a versatile digital strategy, technology innovation, and business transformation expert with more than two decades of global senior leadership experience.

THE BIGGER PICTURE
How AI will change the research industry

By Piers Lee, Managing Director, BDRC Asia

Piers will report on the key findings from extensive research conducted by Asia Research Media on how AI is likely to change the consumer insight industry. We look at the applications of AI, prospects for growth, but also the perceived limitations of AI, hence identifying the role of the human researcher and the role of the market research agency going forward. Essential information for all industry stakeholders!

Piers is on the editorial team of Asia Research Media and has founded several market research firms in SE Asia. He currently heads the Asia Pacific business for the BVA BDRC Group specializing in brand equity research, market sizing & segmentation, customer experience, and new product development.

POWERING CUSTOMER SEGMENTATION WITH AI

By Laurenz Koehler, Managing Partner, Duxton Consulting

Leverage your first party data with AI and machine learning can identify WHO wants WHAT, WHEN. Combine it with psychographic research to understand WHY and you get the most actionable profiling of customers and prospects. Data and research-based segmentation can increase CRM conversion rates by 5-15x and likely add 8-10% growth to your top line. Our most recent case study will show you the impact of Machine Learning, Psychological Research and GenerativeAI step by step.

Laurenz co-founded Duxton Consulting in 2009. He established Morphological Psychology and data science as the core pillars of Duxton’s business to understand consumer behaviour and help clients grow their business. With a master’s degree from the Ruhr University in Economics and over 25 years of strategic experience on three different continents, Laurenz brings considerable breadth of knowledge of diverse markets and consumers.

 

DRIVING CONSUMER-CENTRIC INNOVATION: HEALTHCARE

By Lester Sualog, Head of APAC, BoltChatAI & Percival Pastrana, Consumer Science Lead, Sanofi

Join Lester from Bolt and Val from Sanofi as they reveal how AI-driven qualitative research is transforming consumer-centric innovation in healthcare. Discover how Sanofi used BoltChatAI’s Qual at Scale capabilities to identify unmet consumer needs and accelerate product development. Learn how agile, cost-effective tools can be embedded early in the process to drive meaningful differentiation and deliver winning solutions.

Lester Sualog has 25+ years experience at the forefront of research technology, strategy & insights. A seasoned leader, known for driving commercial growth for top global organisations. He operates at the intersection of technology and industry.

Val leads Consumer Science for Sanofi CHC in AMEA/Global, driving science-backed, consumer-led innovation. Founder of Next Level Innovation, he also coaches teams on best practices, bringing deep expertise in R&D, insights, and design-thinking across categories.

HOW TO BUILD A RESILIENT BRAND IN 2025

By Lyndon Tan, Head of Business Development, YouGov

In an era of rising brand volatility, how can marketers prepare for and bounce back from crises, backlash, and boycotts? This multi-market APAC session draws on YouGov research to reveal how disruptive events impact key brand metrics like Buzz, Impression, and Recommendation. We’ll highlight top incident types such as data leaks and product recalls that affect brand perception across markets. The session will also explore how proactive brand responses can mitigate the impact of these challenging events, and the ideal communication style for effectively engaging audiences during such times.

Lyndon Tan leads the business development team at YouGov Singapore, partnering with organisations to harness data and insights for more impactful customer experiences. With over 20 years of experience in research and analytics, he has worked across academia, government, FMCG, tech, healthcare, media, and tourism, helping brands make smarter, more strategic, data-driven decisions.