AI Heroes

In this episode, Kyle Papanikolas, Insights Leader at McDonald's, shares a provocative theory about how AI is fundamentally dividing the insights profession into two camps—and why only one will thrive in the AI era. With 20 years of experience spanning supplier-side research to leading insights at one of the world's most iconic brands, Kyle offers a candid perspective on AI's real-worl...

Sarah Siddiqui leads portfolio strategy and innovation for Unilever Food Solutions in North America. With 13.5 years at Unilever spanning six categories and three markets, she brings a rare blend of retail consumer goods and B2B2C food service expertise to the AI conversation. In this episode, Sarah shares her transformation from AI skeptic to strategic believer, revealing how a large CPG organiza...

Beyond Speed and Efficiency - When AI Should Unlock New Possibilities When Jenna Beglin evaluates AI tools for consumer research, she's not asking "can this make us faster?" She's asking a more fundamental question: "Does this enable us to do something we couldn't do before?" As a research and insights leader focusing on tech, Jenna has developed a clear philosophy...

AI Heroes: Lucy Richardson on Insight-Led Brand Growth, Boutique Agency Strategy, and Using AI Responsibly for Innovation  🎙️ In this episode of  AI Heroes , host Dave sits down with  Lucy Richardson , Managing Director of  Brand Legacy , to explore how insight-led strategy helps brands grow — and what changes when AI becomes part of the agency and client toolkit. Lucy shares how Brand Legacy has...

AI Heroes: Elle Park, Market research & CI Lead at Arcutis Biotherapeutic, on Building Pharma-Ready AI for Insights, Trust, and Real Business Impact 🎙️ In this episode of AI Heroes , host Dave Carruthers speaks with Elle Park, a pharmaceutical insights leader, about the real-world application of AI in highly regulated environments and what meaningful AI adoption for Insight actually requires....

AI Heroes: Jason Hauer on Agentic AI, Predictive Insight and Compounding Innovation ⚡ In this episode, Dave sits down with innovation veteran  Jason Hauer , founder of The Garage Group and now builder of a portfolio of  AI native companies , to unpack how enterprise teams can move beyond experiments and turn AI into real revenue, speed and market impact. Jason shares what he looks for when backin...

AI Heroes: Didem Molay on AI, B2B Marketing, and Driving Innovation at Unilever Food Solutions 🎙️ In this episode of  AI Heroes host Dave sits down with  Didem Molay , Regional Marketing Director at Unilever Food Solutions, to explore how AI is transforming marketing in the B2B space and what it means for insights, innovation, and organisational change across global markets. Didem shares her journ...

AI Heroes: Tina Tonielli on Growth Mindset, AI in Healthcare, and the Future of Insights 🎙️ AI Heroes Podcast In this episode of  AI Heroes , we sit down with  Tina Tonielli , a legendary leader in consumer healthcare insights, to explore how AI is reshaping one of the world’s most regulated and high impact industries. With decades of experience on household brands like Advil and Centrum, Tina sha...

AI Heroes: Nendra‑Van Wielink on Media, AI & the Future of Integrated Insights 🎙️  Live from Cannes – AI Heroes Live In this episode of  AI Heroes Live , recorded at Insights Lighthouse during the 2025 Cannes Lions Festival, we sit down with  Nendra‑Van Wielink , a media leader with over 20 years of experience and currently shaping media insights at Decathlon. Join us as she unpacks how the wo...

AI Heroes: Dawn Cummins on Organisational Clarity, AI-Driven Productivity & the Power of Transparent Insights 🎙️  Live from Cannes – AI Heroes Live In this episode of  AI Heroes Live , recorded at Insights Lighthouse during the Cannes Lions Festival, we sit down with  Dawn Cummins , former Unilever and Mars Wrigley insights leader and now a strategic consultant, to unpack how AI is reshaping o...

AI Heroes: Rodrigo Milanez on GenAI, Digital Behavior & Embracing the Unexpected in Consumer Insights 🎙️ Live from Cannes – AI Heroes Live In this episode of  AI Heroes Live , recorded at Insights Lighthouse during the Cannes Lions Festival, we sit down with  Rodrigo Milanez , Director of Consumer Insights at PVH (home to Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger), to explore how generative AI is transf...

AI Heroes: Dawn Farren on Being Comfortably Uncomfortable, Democratising Data & Shaping the Future of Insights 🎙️ Live from Cannes – AI Heroes Live In this episode of  AI Heroes Live , recorded at Insights Lighthouse during the Cannes Lions Festival, we sit down with  Dawn Farren , Head of Insights and Analytics at Pepsi Lipton, a joint venture between Unilever and PepsiCo. Dawn offers a candi...

AI Heroes: Thor Olof Philogène on Infrastructure, Insight, and the Future of AI-Powered Decision Making 🎙️  Live from Cannes – AI Heroes Live In this episode of  AI Heroes Live , recorded at Insights Lighthouse during the Cannes Lions Festival, we sit down with  Thor Olof Philogène , CEO and co-founder of Stravito, to explore how enterprise knowledge management is evolving in the age of generative...

AI Heroes: Michael Nevski on Trust, Agentic AI & the Future of Consumer Insights 🎙️  Live from Cannes – AI Heroes Live In this episode of  AI Heroes Live , recorded at Insights Lighthouse during the Cannes Lions Festival, we sit down with  Michael Nevski , Director of Global Insights at Visa, to explore how AI is reshaping consumer behavior, trust, and the future of brand engagement in a fast-...

AI Heroes: Emese Pinter on Youth, Agility & the Democratization of Insights 🎙️  Live from Cannes – AI Heroes Live In this episode of  AI Heroes Live , recorded at Insights Lighthouse during the Cannes Lions Festival, host Dave Carruthers sits down with  Emese Pinter , Global Insights Manager at Sahi Group, to explore the evolving role of insights in a rapidly changing, AI-enabled world. As a r...

AI Heroes: Flemming on Insights, Strategy & the AI-Powered Future 🎙️  Live from Cannes – AI Heroes Live In this episode of  AI Heroes Live , recorded at Insights Lighthouse during the Cannes Lions Festival, we sit down with Flemming , a seasoned insights veteran whose 37-year career has spanned iconic brands like Mars, Levi’s, IKEA, Tommy Hilfiger, and Calvin Klein. Flemming reflects on his un...

AI Heroes: Tony Costella on Embedding Culture into AI at Heineken 🎙️  Live from Cannes – AI Heroes Live In this episode of  AI Heroes Live , recorded at Insights Lighthouse during the Cannes Lions Festival, we sit down with  Tony Costella , Global Head of Insights at Heineken, to explore how one of the world’s most iconic beverage companies is reimagining its future through AI. Tony unpacks Heinek...

Join us for an inspiring conversation with Anneke Quinn de Jong, founder of AI & U and former Philips insights veteran with over 14 years of experience. After working with 30+ technology and FMCG brands, Anneke now focuses on guiding organizations through the human side of AI transformation. In this enlightening discussion, Anneke shares practical wisdom on creating a positive AI adoption jour...

Join us for an enlightening conversation with transformational change agent, Nick Graham, former Insights & Analytics Lead for Mondelēz International and PepsiCo. Nick shares his firsthand experience experimenting with and implementing AI solutions at Mondelez, and the valuable lessons learned while collaborating with agency partners in the insights space. With over 20 years of experience acro...

Join host Dave Carruthers for an illuminating conversation with ONE Strategy Studio's veteran strategists Camilla Pugh and Charlotte White . With over five decades of combined experience across agencies and global brands, they share candid insights about their journey into the world of AI-driven strategy and innovation. Discover what drew these industry veterans to ONE Strategy Studio, and hea...

Welcome to AI Role Models, a podcast from ONE Strategy Studio that goes beyond the hype to explore how real leaders are transforming their businesses with artificial intelligence. Dave Carruthers is your host. In each episode, he sits down with pioneers from the world's leading brands who are reimagining marketing, insights, and innovation with AI. But we're not here to talk about theoretical poss...