When AI agents can research products in depth and make tailored recommendations, the traditional role of brand as a trust shortcut may shrink. In this episode, Steve Phillips, Founder, Chair and Chief Innovation Officer at Zappi, joins host Niels Schillewaert, Head of Research, Conveo.ai, to unpack “agentic shopping” and how AI-mediated decisions could reshape marketing and insights. Steve shares a real example of using Claude to choose a car, frames agent-driven choice as “system three” (system two on steroids), and explains why agents may prioritize specifics like ingredients, reviews, and scientific evidence over symbolism and advertising. They discuss category differences, how research may shift toward deeper human understanding and human-agent interaction, early experiments like surveying agents, and why insights leaders should lean into AI and lead organizational change.

00:00 Brand Collapses With Agents

00:42 Podcast Intro And Guest

01:44 What Is Agentic Shopping

02:32 Car Buying With Claude

05:12 System Three Decision Making

07:04 Why Brands Lose Power

09:42 Category Differences And Grocery

11:35 What Researchers Study Now

12:44 Agent Behavior And Discoverability

15:22 How To Experiment And Innovate

18:41 New Service Line For Insights

21:09 Skills And Industry Opportunity

24:31 One Thing To Do Tomorrow

25:05 Closing And Subscribe

Insights & Innovators Podcast from MRII | Hosted by The Greenbook Podcast Network

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