Sometimes finding reliable statistics can feel like searching for a needle in a digital haystack. Enter Statista Research AI - a new tool that promises to take you "from prompt to insight in 15 seconds."

What is Statista Research AI? 

Think of Statista Research AI as your personal data concierge, powered by AI. It works by accessing the 10 most relevant sources from Statista's vast database, connecting them to your query, and processing them through their LLM (Claude 3 Sonnet) to deliver insights. The platform includes:

  • Over 1 million statistics from 22,500 different sources
  • Coverage of 170 industries across 150+ countries
  • Tens of thousands of infographics and reports
  • Data spanning 80,000+ topics from 18,000 trusted sources

Why It Stands Out 

Statista has earned its reputation through widespread adoption by leading institutions:

  1. Schools like Harvard, Oxford, and USC
  2. Top consulting firms including BCG and McKinsey
  3. Tech giants such as Google, Samsung, and Adobe

Real-World Test: Ghost Kitchens 

I queried Research AI with this prompt: "How many ghost kitchens are there in the United States? Where are they most congested? Should I pursue opening a ghost kitchen?"

The tool quickly provided:

  • Key statistics: U.S. ghost kitchen numbers, consumer ordering preferences, and global market size estimates
  • Multiple (5) reliable sources, including market data and recent U.S. consumer behavior studies
  • Suggested follow-up questions (notable) about ghost kitchen growth trends and consumer preferences
  • Related content about restaurant delivery industry statistics

While Research AI doesn't include Statista's Company or Consumer Insights data (yet), it proved pretty efficient at getting me to the right place. Within one click, I found information about European ghost kitchen funding, which countries lead in ghost kitchens, and information about leading chains like MrBeast Burger. Two clicks even revealed useful industry terms like "cloud kitchen" and “dark kitchen” as alternatives to “ghost kitchen."

Though the most recent U.S. ghost kitchen count (1,500 in 2020) may have changed, Research AI provided valuable starting points (trade publications, etc.) for deeper research both within and beyond Statista's database.

To access Statista Research AI, visit https://libraries.usc.edu/databases/statista

For more analysis, reports, and more; contact a Marshall business librarian: https://libraries.usc.edu/locations/gaughan-tiberti-library/gaughan-tiberti-library-staff