Design Thinking, Supercharged: Using AI to Accelerate Customer Experience Innovation | RampUp 2026

Why are companies still waiting six weeks to talk to customers? Join Daniel Rybeck, Sr. Director of Experience Design & Innovation at Marriott, as he reveals how to supercharge your internal processes to save 25% on your innovation timeline. While the world focuses on "risky" external AI (like chatbots selling $76k trucks for $1), Daniel explains why the biggest wins are found internally. From talking to PersonaBots to using NotebookLM for instant insight podcasts, this session provides eight actionable tactics to move from a problem to a working prototype in record time. 🎙️ Featured Speaker: Daniel Rybeck – Senior Director of Experience Design & Innovation, Marriott 🚀 Key Takeaways: -The 25% Rule: Shift your focus from risky, external chatbots to internal AI applications. By using AI to chip away at small tasks within the Design Thinking framework, you can cut your overall innovation timeline by 25%. -Talk to "PersonaBots": Don't wait 2–6 weeks for human research recruitment. Use synthetic data and PersonaBots early in the process to get immediate, data-driven customer insights before validating with real people. -The "Ugly" Prototype Advantage: Always start with low-fidelity sketches. High-fidelity prototypes make users feel your "blood, sweat, and tears" went into them, discouraging honest feedback. "Ugly" prototypes invite the transformational critiques you actually need. -Insights as Audio: Stop burying stakeholders in 80-page decks. Use tools like NotebookLM to turn dense research into 10-minute AI podcasts that are easier to socialize and digest. 🔗 Next Steps: Explore the RampUp 2026 playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJfTjmqbFPmWs3tcIzOQCT0s-t1En4R-3 Learn more about agentic marketing: https://liveramp.com/blog/advancing-the-foundation-for-agentic-marketing #designthinking #rampup #marriott #innovation #customerexperience #ai #productdesign #ux #PersonaBots #generativeai #replit #rampup