Human-powered sampling in the age of ai with Lisa Wilding Brown

Episode notes

AI is accelerating research, but it isn’t replacing human judgment. In this episode of The Curiosity Current: A Market Research Podcast, Molly Strawn-Carreño is joined by Lisa Wilding Brown, CEO at InnovateMR. They discuss hybrid research methodologies, human-powered sampling, and how to protect data quality in an era defined by speed, automation, and AI. Drawing on more than two decades in digital research, Lisa explains why quality exists on a spectrum and why fraud is only one piece of the equation. From survey design and respondent experience to field time compression and incidence rates, she outlines the trade-offs researchers often overlook when prioritizing speed. With nearly half of global online traffic estimated to be non-human, Lisa emphasizes that quality is a shared responsibility between researchers, sample providers, and technology partners. The conversation also explores the strategic thinking behind InnovateMR’s acquisition of Ivy Exec and the growing demand for hybrid qualitative and quantitative solutions.