Entropik’s Ranjan Kumar on how Emotion AI is revolutionising consumer research

In an era where technology constantly redefines the landscape of business and innovation, it is the ability to identify age-old challenges and tackle them with fresh perspectives and cutting-edge tools that sets companies apart. Ranjan Kumar, Co-founder & CEO, Entropik, embarked upon such a journey by founding Entropik and pioneering Emotion AI. This innovative fusion of artificial intelligence and emotions in the realm of market research is changing how businesses understand consumer behaviour. In this interview, Ranjan Kumar discusses the origins of Entropik, the inspiration behind combining AI and emotions, and the transformative implications of Emotion AI for market research and beyond.

Could you tell us about the journey that led you to found Entropik and focus on Emotion AI? What inspired you to combine AI and emotions in the field of market research?

In the ever-evolving realm of technology and business, you’d be amazed by how innovation often sprouts from spotting age-old issues and tackling them with a fresh perspective and the latest tools.

It started with a simple yet critical observation: companies around the world are pouring a staggering $120 billion into understanding consumer behaviour. Traditional market research practices, dating back a century, had become stagnant and often failed to provide accurate insights in an era marked by digital communication and interaction. Armed with this insight, we envisioned a disruptive solution that could leverage new technologies and scale effectively, and that’s how Entropik was born.

Entropik’s essence lay in being an intellectual property (IP)-driven product organisation, poised to tackle a complex problem that had long evaded resolution. Conventional market research relies heavily on two methodologies: quantitative surveys involving large sample sizes and qualitative data gathered through focus group discussions and interviews. While these methods yielded directional insights, they were time-consuming and often lacked precision. Recognising this inefficiency, we dedicated four years to developing ground-breaking technologies to address this challenge. Our hard work paid off with the creation of 17 approved patents that formed the foundation of Entropik.

Emotion AI is a unique approach to market research. How does it work, and what advantages does it offer over traditional methods in capturing user feedback and insights?

Emotion AI stands as a revolutionary leap forward in the realm of artificial intelligence. Its operation hinges on intricate algorithms that decipher and understand human emotions conveyed through diverse communication channels like text, speech, eye motions, and facial cues. Diverging from conventional approaches that primarily rely on explicit and self-reported data for gathering user feedback and insights, Emotion AI surpasses these confines by delving into the finer shades of human emotional intricacies.

By analysing linguistic patterns, tone of voice, facial micro-expressions, and even physiological signals, emotion AI can accurately discern emotions like joy, anger, sadness, and more. This nuanced understanding of user emotions offers distinct advantages over traditional methods.

Firstly, Emotion AI eliminates the bias and subjectivity inherent in self-reporting, as users may not always be aware of their true emotional states or may not accurately express them.

Furthermore, it operates in real-time, enabling immediate and continuous feedback collection, which is especially valuable for industries like customer service. Finally, it can process large volumes of data rapidly, making it scalable for diverse applications.

Emotion AI provides a deeper understanding of user sentiments, allowing organisations to tailor their products, services, and interactions to genuinely meet user needs and preferences. This technology’s ability to decipher emotional cues holds immense promise in revolutionising how businesses and systems interact with users, enhancing the user experience, and fostering more authentic engagement.

Could you share some specific examples of how Entropik’s Emotion AI has helped enterprise clients in industries like Telecom, BFSI, media, CPG, FMCG, and entertainment gain valuable insights and make informed decisions?

Our AI-powered human insights have proven to be immensely valuable for enterprise clients across various industries. Eye-tracking technology plays a pivotal role in understanding user experiences and enhancing products and services offered by brands.

By analysing where users focus their attention on, businesses can identify design flaws, optimise user interfaces, and tailor their offerings for maximum engagement. In addition, the combination of facial coding, eye tracking, and voice AI has revolutionised consumer research. This amalgamation decodes precise emotions and behaviours of consumers, providing unbiased feedback and rapid actionable insights. For instance, in the telecom sector, our AI has aided in deciphering user reactions to different service plans, leading to more effective pricing strategies.

In BFSI, it has helped banks gauge customers’ comfort levels with new digital interfaces. In media, content creators have honed their products based on real-time emotional responses. Similarly, FMCG brands have refined packaging designs, and the entertainment industry has crafted trailers that better resonate with audiences. Across all these sectors, our AI-tech has empowered decision-makers with data-driven insights, resulting in improved customer experiences and informed strategic choices.

Emotion Tech and cognitive science are intriguing fields. Could you elaborate on how these disciplines intersect and contribute to the development of Emotion AI?

Emotion Tech, also referred to as affective computing, focuses on imbuing technology with the ability to comprehend and respond to human emotions, while cognitive science delves into the intricate workings of the mind, encompassing perception, reasoning, memory, and decision-making. Their convergence generates a potent synergy for the advancement of emotion AI, enriching technology with the capacity for perceiving, understanding, and responding to human emotions in ways that hold substantial potential across numerous applications.

The amalgamation of data collection techniques, including facial recognition, voice analysis, and physiological sensors, with cognitive science’s understanding of emotional expression, facilitates the accurate interpretation of human emotional states.

This relationship extends to the realm of emotion modelling, where cognitive science theories underpin algorithms that replicate emotional processes within machines. By leveraging natural language processing techniques, emotion AI can discern emotional cues from text, while cognitive science contributes insights into linguistic expressions of emotions.

This synergy further paves the way for adaptive systems that personalise interactions based on users’ emotional states, reflecting both fields’ contributions. As ethical considerations and societal implications are paramount, the integration of cognitive science’s insights into ethical decision-making ensures that emotion AI systems are designed with respect for diverse emotional and cultural contexts.

With the rapid advancements in AI, what are some of the latest trends you’re observing in the realm of consumer research, particularly in relation to AI-powered solutions?

One prominent trend in consumer research is the utilisation of AI-powered predictive analytics, which enables businesses to anticipate consumer behaviour with unprecedented accuracy. Machine learning algorithms analyse vast datasets to forecast purchasing patterns, enabling companies to proactively tailor their offerings and marketing strategies.

Another key trend is the incorporation of natural language processing (NLP) to extract deep insights from unstructured consumer feedback, spanning social media content, product reviews, and customer service interactions. This empowers businesses to comprehend customer sentiments, preferences, and pain points more comprehensively. Moreover, AI-driven emotional intelligence is gaining traction, enabling businesses to delve beyond surface-level data and uncover hidden emotional cues, enhancing their understanding of consumer motivations and reactions.

Personalisation is reaching new heights with AI as companies leverage consumer data to curate hyper-personalised experiences, fostering stronger customer engagement and loyalty. These trends collectively reflect the transformative impact of AI-powered solutions on reshaping the consumer research landscape.

Could you provide insights into how your team develops unique AI solutions, and what sets your technology apart from others in the market?

Entropik is renowned for its outstanding research and development, which arises from a multifaceted strategy incorporating state-of-the-art methods, interdisciplinary teamwork, and an unwavering dedication to pioneering advancements. Our group consists of specialists spanning research, technology, data science, and machine learning, enabling us to harness a wide array of viewpoints to create distinctive AI solutions.

What truly distinguishes our technology is our utilisation of multimodal data fusion, integrating inputs from sources like facial expressions, eye movements, and voice to holistically understand human insights. This approach provides a more comprehensive and nuanced understanding of user experiences compared to single-modal approaches. Furthermore, our AI models are trained on vast and diverse datasets, enabling them to generalise well across various demographics and contexts. Rigorous validation and testing processes ensure the reliability and accuracy of our solutions. By combining these factors, Entropik delivers AI technology that not only comprehensively captures human insights but also sets a higher standard for precision, adaptability, and real-world applicability in comparison to other offerings in the market.

India’s role in the global AI landscape is growing. How has Entropik contributed to putting India on the map in terms of developing AI solutions for global clients and consumers?

Since its inception, Entropik has been dedicated to harnessing AI’s potential for consumer and user research. Our three proprietary technologies – Facial Coding, Eye Tracking, and Voice AI – have revolutionised how we understand consumer behaviour. Entropik has 17 global patents in multi-modal Emotion AI technologies. The platform has an online panel of 60 million respondents across 120 countries, which gives Entropik a distinctive advantage.

Entropik solves a challenge that transcends the boundaries of industries and markets. Our invaluable, unbiased, and real-time actionable insights translate to remarkable returns on investment for brands. Our offering serves over 150 international clients spanning a range of industries including telecommunications, BFSI, media, CPG (consumer packaged goods), FMCG, entertainment, and more. Our customer base extends across regions including the United States, Europe, Southeast Asia, India, and the Middle East.

The integration of ethics in AI is crucial. How does Entropik ensure transparency, accountability, and ethical considerations in its AI-powered solutions and research practices?

Entropik places paramount emphasis on integrating ethics into its AI-powered solutions and research practices, in line with its compliance with Soc 2 Type 2 and GDPR certifications for data protection. To ensure transparency, the company maintains open communication about data collection and usage processes, providing clients and participants with comprehensive information on how their data will be utilised, while adhering to GDPR guidelines for data transparency and consent.

Moreover, robust data anonymisation and aggregation techniques are employed to safeguard individual privacy. Accountability is assured through stringent quality control measures, ensuring the accuracy and reliability of insights derived from AI models. Ethical considerations are deeply ingrained in Entropik’s development practices. Regular internal audits and external reviews, as mandated by Soc 2 Type 2, further underscore the company’s commitment to maintaining the highest ethical standards. Through these efforts, Entropik not only fosters trust with clients and participants, but also contributes responsibly to the progress of AI technology within the framework of data protection regulations and ethical principles.

Moving beyond traditional surveys and interviews, how does AI-driven Emotional Intelligence uncover hidden customer emotions, providing a deeper understanding of consumer behaviour?

AI-driven emotional intelligence surpasses conventional survey and interview methods by delving into subtle customer emotions, revealing concealed insights that deepen comprehension of consumer behaviour. Through AI’s analysis of diverse data sources like social media and customer interactions, it uncovers real-time emotional perspectives. AI-advanced sentiment analysis detects non-verbal cues and deciphers emotional tones from text, voice, facial expressions, and images, providing a more accurate depiction of consumer sentiment compared to self-reported surveys.

Machine learning identifies behavioural patterns associated with emotions, enabling businesses to anticipate responses. By constructing customer profiles enriched with emotional attributes, AI helps tailor personalised experiences based on genuine emotional triggers.

The transformation from consumer behaviour analysis to understanding consumer emotions seems ground-breaking. Could you elaborate on the implications of this shift for the future of market research and consumer insights?

The shift from analysing consumer behaviour to understanding their emotions holds significant implications, ranging from a deeper comprehension of consumer motivations to an enhanced focus on personalised marketing. It promises to revolutionise how companies approach market research, enabling them to forge stronger emotional connections with consumers, drive loyalty, and shape more effective business strategies. By uncovering the emotional aspects of decision-making, businesses can create customer experiences, develop innovative products, and design communication strategies that are consumer-centric. However, this transition also brings challenges, such as ethical considerations and the need for interdisciplinary approaches.

In your opinion, what does the future hold for the intersection of AI, emotions, and market research? How do you envision Emotion AI evolving in the coming years?

Emotion AI in market research is set to redefine how we understand consumer behaviour. It is already evolving into a vital tool, enabling us to unravel the emotional underpinnings of consumer decisions with remarkable precision. Imagine peeling back the layers of decision-making and uncovering the emotions that guide those choices – all with breath-taking accuracy.

This will empower businesses with unparalleled insights into customer sentiment, enabling personalised marketing strategies, real-time feedback loops, and predictive analytics based on emotional trends. This is going to fuel personalised marketing strategies that hit the mark every time. We will know what your customers are feeling even before they finish typing that comment.