The Danger of “Looks Like Insight”

Written By Paul Coleman
 

We’re entering a moment where insight 'looks' better than ever.

Cleaner. Faster. More confident.

And further away from real people.

AI can now generate “customer portraits” in seconds -
who people are, what they care about, what they’ll do next.

It sounds right.
It reads well.
It fills the slide.

But here’s the problem:

It hasn’t actually met anyone.

No eye contact.
No hesitation.
No contradiction.
No “that doesn’t quite make sense… say that again.”

Just patterns. From data.
From the people who left a trace.

The missing majority

In digital spaces, a small minority create the majority of content.

  • Around 1% actively create

  • 9% contribute occasionally

  • 90% observe and leave little trace

So we’re building “understanding” on the loudest 10%… and calling it everyone.

That’s not insight.
That’s partial visibility, dressed up as truth.

Stereotypes aren’t gone. They’ve just been rebranded.

We’re told the old demographic stereotypes are dead.

And yet, in the same breath, we generate new “portraits” from data
and treat them as reality.

Averages, dressed up as people.

What’s really being replaced:

AI isn’t replacing qualitative research.

It’s replacing the discomfort required to do it properly.

Because real understanding isn’t neat. It should take time and effort.

It’s sitting in someone’s world and:

  • hearing things that don’t quite add up

  • noticing what isn’t said

  • holding contradictions

  • feeling unsure before clarity comes

That’s where insight lives.

Confidence without contact

AI removes friction.

Which means it also removes:

  • context

  • emotion

  • tension

  • reality

And then gives us something that feels complete.

Confidence without contact.

And that’s where the risk lies.

Because decisions are still made -
just one step further away from real life.

Our stance

We’re not anti-AI.

We use it.
It’s powerful.
It speeds things up.

But we’re clear on this:

AI understands patterns in data.
Humans understand behaviour in context.

Those are not the same thing.

The line we won’t cross

If you haven’t spent time with real people, you don’t really know.

Insight isn’t generated.

It’s encountered.

The Humanise view

Use AI for speed.
Use humans for truth.

Because the moment it all feels too easy…

you’ve probably stepped away from reality.

And in our world, that’s the only place insight actually exists.

If AI is your customer, ask AI. If humans are your customer, speak to humans.

 
Paul Coleman
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