From Deep-cover Ethnographies in War-Torn Nations to the Cutting-Edge of AI Innovation: The Truly Unique Journey of David Griffiths

David Griffiths has walked a unique path over the past two decades—one that has taken him from conducting ethnographic fieldwork across the world, including amid the ravages of natural disasters and civil war to being truly at the forefront of generative AI, advising several US blue chip companies on how they should navigate this bold new frontier of Intelligence.

David’s career took root in the UK, where he honed his skills at youth research agencies. There, he developed techniques for studying audiences in their natural environments, allowing him to observe their true behaviors and perspectives without unsettling direct questioning. From the very start, David immersed himself in the work – using his young age as an advantage to embed within youth audiences, developing a knack for building human intelligence networks quickly, and carving a niche by being the arbiter of the audience’s unfiltered values, viewpoints, and priorities.

Later on, in 2006, he jumped at the chance to team up with the renowned UK hip-hop group The Streets and MTV for a project highlighting this work focused on underprivileged youth in Glasgow. This collaboration led to the release of a record-breaking song, featured as a B-Side to The Streets’ music, along with a captivating 3-minute video and an engaging 20-minute documentary. What’s more, all proceeds from this project went directly to support the AIDS Foundation, Staying Alive.

Driven by a passion for understanding human experiences, David ventured into some of the 21st century’s most devastating tragedies. Following the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, he journeyed to Sri Lanka, walking among the wreckage of the tsunami train disaster and interviewing the people still living under the train—at that point, the deadliest rail accident in world history.

Later his passion for adventure led him to Indochina where he took on the role of Director of Insight for Riverorchid (now Havas Riverorchid). Here he led Gallup’s World Poll in Laos & Cambodia – the largest global study of its kind –  representing a sample of 92% of the population. Adding to this complexity, the Cambodian poll was run during the height of the Thai-Khmer border dispute which meant many villages were militarized. Later in support of the World Health Organization, the Cambodian Government & the Cambodian National Police, he ran ethnographic interviews to develop motor safety laws that worked to reduce road deaths, as well as living on the Tonle Sap Lake with the people there for several weeks to uncover insights into this incredibly diverse community.

The harsh realities David witnessed on the frontlines stayed with him and shaped his perspective moving forward. “There is always a story behind the story,” he says – paraphrasing Hunter S Thompson. “Environments like those taught me the importance of having access to actual intelligence from the people living in the world you are investigating.” With a pause, David adds, “To truly understand a situation, you have to go straight to the source. Listen to the unfiltered voices on the ground—before the internet was as pervasive as it is today, that’s where you found the human truths.”

That drive to uncover raw, unbiased insights directly from people has been the common thread through David’s career at the forefront of research, data, and technology. During his time as VP at Omnicom’s C Space building online communities in China – where he won their coveted ‘Excellence in Innovation Award’ – and later in founding & becoming Vice-President of Innovation for Black Swan Data, he’s demonstrated leadership in pioneering innovative data and machine learning solutions. His mission? To find smarter ways to cut through the noise of data and zero in on the insights that truly matter.

“We’re living in a world where we have more data than we know what to do with – covering everything from social media, online reviews, to the company data we collect – you name it,” David says. “The real challenge is figuring out how to make sense of it all. That’s where advanced technologies like AI are particularly helpful to sift through it all and understand people’s true motivations and behaviors at that moment—not just what the data says they should be doing.”

Working with PepsiCo, his team’s data-powered analysis didn’t just regurgitate the same old market research. It identified key cultural forces and audience passion points that others were missing. Those kinds of revelations directly informed blockbuster new product launches like Bubly sparkling water – now a billion-dollar brand.

“The technology allows us to decode what’s driving consumer behavior and where things are heading,” David explains. “For PepsiCo, we went beyond just segmenting people as ‘soda drinkers.’ We uncovered deeper, changing values and need-states around health and experiences. Which is exactly what shaped Bubly’s whole concept.”

Whether working with iconic brands like McDonald’s to reshape their advertising message or guiding Panasonic’s & GateGroup’s aviation strategy, David’s data-enabled approaches tap into the genuine motivations that conventional methods often miss, integrating cutting-edge tech with his innate understanding of people.

Now, as the founder of Ideas— he has dedicated his expertise in data & intelligence to focus on how it can be used in partnership with AI for insight & innovation. Leading this arm at the award-winning consultancy, Basis Research Group for 16 months now, David has partnered with most of the businesses that own the major brands we use every day, helping to reset their innovation roadmaps and focus attention where it matters. His vision? To shift people’s focus toward value creation, to de-risk decision making, and to ensure intelligence is in the hands of the people that need it – when they need it.

“The biggest danger facing any brand today is falling behind because you didn’t see what was coming,” David explains. “Our AI models can quickly analyze data from thousands of sources, providing leaders with the insights they need to stay ahead of trends in a way that was previously impossible without AI”

From ethnographies in Glasgow and co-creation workshops in rural Cambodia to cutting-edge AI data models, David has walked the pathways of innovation and insights in the most extreme environments imaginable – staying at the leading edge of insight and intelligence.

Now leading Ideas, he combines his hands-on experience in the field with a keen technical vision to climb new heights—helping transform how companies discover growth opportunities and bring powerful ideas to life.

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