On the 28th – 29th January 2026, our team headed to Berlin for QUAL360 EU, hosted in the heart of the city. A key fixture in the qualitative research calendar, QUAL360 brings together leading voices from across Europe to explore innovation, emerging methodologies and the future of consumer understanding.
Onstage: Bolt Insight X Tata Consumer Products
Taking the stage at QUAL360 EU was Ester Marchetti, Head of Innovation & Co-Founder at Bolt Insight, alongside Marcello Formisano, Head of Consumer Insights International at Tata Consumer Products.
Their talk explored how generative AI is reshaping online discovery and influencing consumer decision-making, drawing on cross-market qualitative research conducted via BoltChatAI.
During the session, the team shared findings from 100 AI-moderated interviews across the US, UK and Germany using BoltChatAI. The research explored how online grocery shoppers respond as AI moves closer to influencing purchase decisions.
From Exploration to Influence
Across markets, consumers described AI as faster and more efficient than traditional search when comparing options. It synthesises information and simplifies complex decisions, making it a powerful comparison engine in the exploratory phase of the journey.
Sentiment shifts, however, as AI moves closer to purchase. Through BoltChatAI’s emotion and sentiment analysis capabilities, a clear inflection point emerged: when recommendations feel commercially driven or overly personalised, comfort drops particularly among UK and German participants.
One UK respondent described the experience as “psychological manipulation.” The concern is not AI itself, but perceived loss of autonomy.
Transparency and Control Define The Next Phase
The findings revealed a layered hierarchy in how AI earns legitimacy. Transparency forms the foundation, followed by user control.
BoltChat AI’s cross-market sentiment analysis pointed out how expectations around transparency and control differ by region, highlighting that US consumers show greater openness to clearly labelled links, while UK and German respondents expect stronger separation between paid and organic results, with German participants displaying lower default trust overall.
Efficiency attracts attention, but transparency sustains trust.
Couldn’t Make it to Berlin?
We recorded our session for those who weren’t able to join us at QUAL360 EU! Click the video below or visit our YouTube channel to catch up.
Until Next Time…
Thank you to everyone who joined us in Berlin for QUAL360 Europe. Moments like these are what move qualitative research forward by challenging assumptions, exploring new methodologies and examining how technology is reshaping consumer understanding.
If you’d like to learn more about how Bolt Insight can support deeper, AI-powered insight at scale, click ‘Book a Demo’ in the top right to connect with our team.