Insights
Consumers Prefer AI That Is Not Automated
New conjoint research reveals that, while tech companies are racing toward fully autonomous "agentic" AI, general consumers are hesitant. In fact, adding autonomous actions to a standard paid AI plan can decrease market preference by 12%. Consumers are willing to pay $1.00 less for AI plans that act autonomously.
All Articles
Consumers Don’t Mind Ads in AI If They Are Relevant
A recent conjoint analysis suggests that consumers are no less likely to use AI tools with ads, as long as the ads are relevant.
Ethical AI Commands a Premium
In a choice-based conjoint, we find that U.S. consumers are willing to pay $2.40/mo extra for an AI tool that is not used by the military
Consumers Are Willing to Pay for the Right AI Plan
In a conjoint analysis with U.S. consumers, 66% of respondents selected a paid AI plan at least once.
In the Age of AI, Original Data Matters More Than Ever
As AI search evolves, the companies with the greatest influence are unlikely to be those that produce the most optimized content. The companies with the most influence are more likely to be the ones that produce the most useful knowledge.
The Importance Trap: What Voters Say They Care About Isn’t What Influences Their Votes
A survey conducted during the April 2026 federal by-election in the University-Rosedale riding demonstrates a stark disconnect between what voters say they care about and what actually drives their behaviour. The findings reveal that traditional issue-importance polling creates dangerous strategic blind spots.
What Features Lead Consumers to Upgrade to Paid AI Plans?
In a choice-based conjoint survey with 314 American consumers, we found that low-cost adjustments to AI plans can increase consumers' willingness to sign up for paid plans. For example, ethical AI increases conversion to paid plans by 1.6 percentage points.
How Companies Use Conjoint Analysis to Build Products Customers Want and Increase Revenue
Conjoint analysis is one of the most widely used methods to determine what customers value and how much they are willing to pay.
What's the Difference Between Conjoints and MaxDiff?
Both market research methodologies ask respondents to make choices, instead of rating products or features. The key difference is products vs. features.
When Should You Use MaxDiff?
MaxDiff tells us how much respondents like each item in a list or how important they think each item is.
Selling to Canada: What Canadian consumer preferences mean for companies entering the market
A survey of 1,001 Canadian consumers shows that 83% of Canadians are open to imports from Europe and 78% are open to imports from Asia and Latin America.
Most Canadians support Queer-friendly businesses
A survey of 1,001 Canadian consumers shows that 61% of Canadians would buy from Queer-friendly businesses. This willingness varies by region, community type, gender, and vote choice, but not by age or education.
To Win with AI, Companies Must Provide Value to Consumers
A survey of 1,001 Canadian consumers reveals a stark reality: AI use has a net negative effect of 19.1% on consumers' willingness to buy a product or a service and 11.1% more consumers want to spend less on AI tools than want to spend more, even when we point to the benefits of AI.
Fall Survey
Empirical Intelligence conducted a representative survey of 1,001 Canadians nationwide on November 5-6, 2025. We asked questions about politics, business, technology, health, and education. This article presents some of the main results.
Federal Budget Poll: Canadians think the budget will have a “generational impact” but there are risks for the Liberals
In a survey of 1,001 Canadians on November 5th-6th, 2025, we found that 52% of Canadians who had heard of the budget (56% had heard of it) thought it would have a “generational" impact.
Carney Says He Isn’t Justin Trudeau. Canadians Agree
A representative survey of 1,001 respondents run from April 4th to 7th shows that Canadians agree with Carney.
Canadians are only partly convinced that Poilievre is Canada’s Trump
Canadians disagree that Poilievre is Canada's Trump, except on ideology.