EP10 - AI Meets Academia: The Rise of the Machine Marketing Scholar

In this episode of the Professor Insight Podcast, we explore a fascinating and timely question: how is generative artificial intelligence beginning to reshape academic research itself? Drawing on a newly published academic paper from the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science (April 2025), we examine how large multimodal models like ChatGPT-4o could revolutionise the way marketing scholars generate ideas, build theories, design experiments, and analyse data. Authored by Kiwoong Yoo, Michael Haenlein, and Kelly Hewett, the paper—titled “A whole new world, a new fantastic point of view”—offers a serious look at how generative AI might soon become a research partner, not just a productivity tool.

Rather than speculating, the authors put AI to the test by replicating the entire research process of 35 published consumer research articles using ChatGPT-4o. They applied advanced prompting strategies like chain-of-thought prompting and carefully evaluated the AI’s performance across key stages such as theory development, pilot testing, and data analysis. What emerged is a nuanced picture of where AI excels—like generating conceptual frameworks and simulating study designs—and where it still struggles, such as interpreting human behaviour or conducting robust statistical analyses.

This episode is a must-listen for anyone curious about the intersection of AI and knowledge creation. Whether you are a researcher, educator, PhD student, or simply someone fascinated by how ideas are shaped and shared, this conversation offers a rare look at how AI may redefine the boundaries of academic research. We explore the promises, the limitations, and the ethical questions that come with using AI as a co-investigator in scholarly work.