Key takeaways from Quirk’s Event – Dallas 2026
Editor’s note: Lori Reiser, Vice President at Advanis, headquartered in Canada. This is an edited version of an article that was originally published under the title, “Quirks Dallas Recap - Human Intelligence at the Forefront.”
As the doors close on another incredible Quirk’s Event, we’re back at the office with notebooks full of ideas, renewed energy for the future of our industry and lots of gratitude for everyone who stopped by our booth!
It was a privilege for the Advanis team to be part of the speaker lineup this year. Getting to share our own perspective while listening to so many brilliant peers highlighted just how fast the world of consumer insights is evolving.
Here are our top four takeaways from the overarching themes of the sessions.
The new equation: AI + human intelligence
AI is no longer just a buzzword. It’s firmly embedded in our day-to-day lives. But the conversation has matured.
We’re no longer just marveling at AI – we are actively defending the need for human intuition, empathy and oversight. The winning formula relies on combining massive computational speed with irreplaceable human context.
As Patrick Kyba, principal consultant and Anu Bhalla, SVP, business development at Advanis, and Glen Franklin, AVP of RIA and lead gen strategy and research at Jackson National Life Distributors LLC (Glen Franklin is not affiliated with Advanis.), highlighted in their session, consumers are rarely purely logical, yet we often treat them as if they are. Empathy and human-centricity remain our most powerful tools.
To AI or not to AI (and what will be allowed)
Organizations are taking two very different approaches to the use of AI – and insights teams are often dependent on organizational wide decisions.
Some organizations are proceeding with a great deal of caution –disallowing it entirely or offering heavily guard railed access.
Other organizations have embraced the tools more rapidly and have begun to embed AI across their workflow.
Insights teams need to clearly define the use cases and benefits of AI to compliance teams, or risk falling behind on their ability to deliver at speed.
Death to the "deck:” Elevating insights into action
A recurring theme across multiple sessions was the frustration of brilliant insights getting trapped in a 100-slide deck. The focus has shifted heavily toward strategic storytelling.
Researchers are stepping up as business partners, finding innovative ways to ensure findings are easily understood, remembered and activated within their client's commercial leadership teams to drive tangible growth.
Defending data quality
The methodologies we rely on to ensure data quality are getting a serious upgrade.
Even more importantly, as research fraud becomes more sophisticated, our industry is fighting back with new mixed-mode approaches to protect the integrity of our data.
“Gold star” sessions
To everyone who participated in our "Give a Gold Star" experience, thank you! It was incredibly inspiring to see so many of you stop by the Advanis booth to champion the great ideas you heard this week.
Congratulations to the most nominated speeches: “The in-house AI playbook: How Chuck E. Cheese scales quality insights with a lean team,” presented by Chuck E. Cheese and “Real humans, real research: Why mixed-mode matters more than ever in complex B2B and global studies,” presented by MAVRIX . We hope you all enjoy the little pieces of Canadiana.