Quirks Chicago 2026, brought together brands, agencies, and tech providers to compare notes on what’s changing fastest in market research, from AI-enabled speed to the very human nuance needed to make decisions with confidence.
Five members of the Curion team attended and captured the moments that mattered most: how GLP-1s are reshaping “the general population,” why classic metrics like overall liking are being rethought, what great packaging work looks like when equity and innovation collide, and where new platforms are genuinely adding commercial value. Here’s a curated recap of their key learnings and what they mean for categories and brands right now.
And don’t miss the video recap and photo gallery below.
Key takeaways overview
- AI is now table stakes, but the conversation is shifting to commercial application: where speed is worth the trade-offs, and where rigor still requires human validation
- GLP-1 impact is changing the research lens: redefining who counts as “general population” and how brands interpret appetite, satisfaction, and functional benefits
- “Overall liking” isn’t always predictive: purchase intent and success increasingly connect to broader well-being drivers (physical, emotional, social) beyond taste alone
- Packaging innovation is more iterative than ever: the best work balances modernization with recognizability for shoppers and acceptance for retailers
- Community still matters: strong booth conversations, sessions, and peer meetups reinforced that relationships and craft remain differentiators
Kristin’s standout theme was how quickly the definition of “good” research is expanding. Even with AI dominating the backdrop, the most compelling sessions focused on real-world behavioral shifts, especially the downstream impact of GLP-1s on eating occasions, product expectations, and what it means to recruit and interpret a “general population” sample. She also noted growing momentum behind more holistic success frameworks that move beyond taste-first metrics, plus packaging work that uses rapid iteration to protect equity while still driving meaningful innovation.
- GLP-1s as a research disruptor: shifting behaviors may require rethinking sampling norms and standard hedonic measures
- Beyond “overall liking”: evidence that purchase intent may not track neatly with liking; well-being drivers matter
- Packaging modernization: iterative qualitative approaches help balance innovation with recognizability and retailer realities
- Industry connection: strong value in community moments and cross-discipline conversations
Richard used Quirks Chicago as a scan of the rapidly growing AI and platform ecosystem, especially AI moderation, automated HUT capabilities, and tools that promise faster analysis and reporting. His key conclusion: the market is moving beyond experimentation and into pragmatic, commercial decisioning; balancing robustness with savings and speed. He also observed a strategic gap among many vendors: few combine product expertise with real-world sensory and face-to-face logistics at scale.
- AI moderation & deployment tools are proliferating: several platforms are racing to make qualitative work faster and more scalable
- Platform strategy questions are unavoidable: in multiple categories, partnering may be faster than building, if capabilities truly differentiate
- Data advantage matters as much as AI: vendors combining multi-source, real-time market signals (e.g., reviews, price, ingredients, packaging) stand out
For Abbey, the event was equal parts learning and momentum: packed sessions, energized client conversations, and a strong Curion presence that stood out amid an AI-saturated agenda. Her key sessions focused on where AI can add a “directional” step to innovation decisions (without replacing human judgment), plus a leadership reminder that meaningful change often comes from internal entrepreneurs who connect people, needs, and long-term outcomes.
- Synthetic / digital twins (Newell Brands + Simporter): strong interest in AI-supported personas, with healthy skepticism about trust and the need to pair outputs with human oversight and real-world validation
- Innovation as a balancing act (PepsiCo + Woxi): AI and purchase-intelligence data can help teams map consequences, reduce internal silos, and identify where to place “smart bets” across a category
- Intrapreneurship (AbbVie): change-makers create momentum by rallying stakeholders, defining needs clearly, and playing the long game
- Curion’s GLP-1s session: strong turnout and positive feedback, particularly for tackling the topic with nuance and a holistic lens
Katie described Quirks Chicago 2026 as her most engaged year yet, helped by Curion’s visible sponsorship and booth experience, which created more high-quality conversations and follow-up opportunities. She also highlighted how Curion’s GLP-1s panel stood out precisely because it wasn’t “another AI session”, and she noted balanced perspectives from other talks on synthetic personas: useful for speed and efficiency, but only when used thoughtfully and with clear awareness of limitations.
- Client engagement at a high: strong Curion presence (app sponsorship + booth activation) translated into meaningful conversations and leads
- GLP-1s drew a crowd: relevance of the topic, and brand voices, helped make the panel one of the best attended sessions
- Synthetic personas: promising for speed, but best used with guardrails and clarity on when human input is essential
- Relationship-building still wins: thoughtful touches (like client passes and in-person meetups) create outsized value
Michael’s take was a clear signal check: many of the same themes are repeating across events; segmentation, synthetic testing, and agentic “twins”, but the most consistent message from brand-side speakers is that AI is a way to move faster internally, not a substitute for real consumer learning. He also heard repeatedly that qualitative depth remains a must-have, and Curion’s non-AI-forward positioning helped the team stand out in booth conversations.
- AI for efficiency, not replacement: brands want faster decisions, paired with human testing and validation
- Qualitative depth is strategic: clients emphasized the need for context, probing, and the “why” behind numbers
- Differentiation matters: in a crowded AI narrative, a focus on craft and applied expertise cut through
- GLP-1 curiosity is broad: the topic is resonating across industries and driving follow-up conversations
Let's turn conference buzz into better decisions
Across five perspectives, the message from Quirks Chicago was consistent: AI is accelerating the pace of insights, but confidence still comes from combining smart tools with the right data, human expertise, and real-world validation.
If you’re navigating GLP-1-driven behavior shifts, rethinking what success metrics should look like, or exploring where AI can responsibly speed up your learning cycle, we’d love to compare notes.
Reach out to your Curion contact or request a consultation to explore GLP-1 research, sensory strategy, packaging learning, or AI-enabled qualitative workflows.
