The Synthetic Audience Revolution: Jon Schultz + Shann Biglione
November 3, 2026
What happens when the people giving feedback on your next big idea aren’t people at all? Bryce and guest co-host Jon Schultz welcome Shann Biglione for a candid conversation about synthetic audiences—the AI stand-ins changing how companies test ideas and anticipate reactions. From unlocking forgotten consumer research to rehearsing sensitive conversations with investors, journalists, and regulators, they explore what these tools make possible, where they fall short, and whether more data will give marketers the courage to take risks—or another reason to play safe.
Jon Schultz brings an agency perspective from VML Chicago, where he explores how synthetic audiences can help clients put existing research to work and test strategic hypotheses. Shann Biglione spent two decades in strategy, including roles at Publicis and Disney, before co-founding Kumquat AI, which builds synthetic audiences for communications teams. He also co-hosts The Overthinkers podcast.
What happens when the people giving feedback on your next big idea aren’t people at all? Bryce and guest co-host Jon Schultz welcome Shann Biglione for a candid conversation about synthetic audiences—the AI stand-ins changing how companies test ideas and anticipate reactions. From unlocking forgotten consumer research to rehearsing sensitive conversations with investors, journalists, and regulators, they explore what these tools make possible, where they fall short, and whether more data will give marketers the courage to take risks—or another reason to play safe.
Jon Schultz brings an agency perspective from VML Chicago, where he explores how synthetic audiences can help clients put existing research to work and test strategic hypotheses. Shann Biglione spent two decades in strategy, including roles at Publicis and Disney, before co-founding Kumquat AI, which builds synthetic audiences for communications teams. He also co-hosts The Overthinkers podcast.
Key takeaways:
· A convincing persona isn’t the same as a credible audience. Asking AI to pretend to be a Gen Z shopper can produce plausible answers. Useful synthetic audiences need grounding in evidence, carefully designed instructions, and validation against real human responses.
· If you can ask a human, ask a human. Shann argues that synthetic audiences are especially valuable when stakeholders are difficult to reach or the material is too confidential to test openly. Speed and convenience shouldn’t become excuses to stop talking to people.
· Put the research you already have to work. Interviews, conversations, and overlooked research files can become a knowledge base that teams can question and explore, making existing audience intelligence more accessible.
· Watch what AI leaves out. A response can sound convincing while missing a crucial motivation, relationship, or piece of context. Shann highlights omission as a recurring challenge in building useful synthetic personas.
· Prediction doesn’t remove uncertainty. Synthetic feedback can inform a decision, but it cannot guarantee an outcome. Context changes, people are inconsistent, and strategic judgment still matters.
· Don’t let testing become a ceiling on creativity. Jon sees potential to give clients confidence in unfamiliar ideas, while Shann warns against making every risk dependent on data. The challenge is to use these tools to explore more possibilities without losing the courage to surprise people.
About Jon Schultz: https://jonschultz.work/
Jon on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonschultzstrategist/
Shann Biglione on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/shann/
Kumkuat AI: https://www.kumkuat.ai/
Shann’s Podcast, “The Overthinkers:” https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-overthinkers/id1479249332
For everything ShanghaiZhan: http://zhanstation.com/
Bryce on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brycewhitwam/
Ali on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alikazmi/