Vital Findings and Dexcom have emerged winners of the 2025 Health Care and Pharmaceutical Research Project Award following the successful application of artificial intelligence in developing a new market segmentation model for Dexcom’s consumer product, Stelo.
The award was announced during a virtual ceremony held on November 19, 2025, as part of the Marketing Research and Insight Excellence Awards, which recognise innovative research approaches within the global healthcare and pharmaceutical industry. The project stood out for its use of advanced AI tools to accelerate insight generation at scale ahead of a major product launch.
Instead of relying on traditional, time-intensive qualitative research methods, the research teams deployed AI to rapidly map consumer segments, generate realistic visual personas and simulate real-world engagement scenarios. These AI-generated personas were transformed into short videos and interactive chatbots, enabling internal teams to engage directly with each segment during strategic discussions.
Brandspur Brand News understands that this approach played a critical role in Dexcom’s go-to-market strategy for Stelo, the company’s first continuous glucose monitoring device available without a prescription. The segmentation helped marketing and media teams quickly align around priority consumer groups, supporting a focused and confident product rollout.
Jason Kramer, Chief Research Officer at Vital Findings, said the project succeeded because Dexcom was willing to adopt unconventional research methods and embrace emerging technology. He noted that AI was not used as a shortcut but as a structured tool to complement quantitative data and bring consumer insights to life under tight timelines.
According to the research partners, the success of the AI-led segmentation has encouraged broader adoption of similar methods across other regions, with plans already underway to extend the model into Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The project also demonstrated how AI-powered personas can remain relevant beyond launch, offering teams a dynamic reference point for ongoing decision-making.
Industry analysts say the recognition highlights a growing shift within marketing research, where artificial intelligence is increasingly used to test hypotheses, enrich quantitative findings and maintain up-to-date consumer understanding in fast-moving markets. As competition intensifies and product cycles shorten, such adaptive research models are expected to become more central to healthcare innovation strategies.
