Human-AI interaction
Algorithmic personalisation and recommender systems
Generative AI and LLM applications in marketing
Brand activism and brand-society interaction
Consumer psychology in digital environments
- vishnu.prasad@spjimr.org
Vishnu Prasad V
Assistant Professor, MarketingVishnu Prasad V holds a Ph.D. in Marketing from the Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode (IIMK). He completed his MBA from the Shailesh J. Mehta School of Management, IIT Bombay, and a B.Tech in Industrial Biotechnology from the Government College of Technology, Coimbatore.
His research and teaching focus on three interconnected areas: consumption in virtual environments, with an emphasis on the psychological mechanisms underlying digital consumption; algorithmic marketing and human–AI interaction, examining how algorithms influence and respond to consumer behaviour; and brand ethics and societal engagement, exploring the normative dimensions of brand–consumer relationships. He uses experiments, large-scale digital trace data and machine learning methods to study how algorithmic systems shape individual and collective behaviour.
Prof. Prasad’s research has been published in journals including the Journal of Consumer Behaviour and the International Journal of Tourism Research, and presented at leading conferences, including the Association for Consumer Research (ACR), the American Marketing Association (AMA), the European Marketing Academy (EMAC), and ANZMAC.
He has received several awards and grants for his work, including the Franco Nicosia Best Paper Award (ACR, 2025), the Bala and Vasantha Balachandran Faculty Research Grant (NASMEI, 2025) and the Sheth Foundation Marketing Research Grant (AIM-AIB, 2025). In 2026, the Observer Research Foundation selected him as a Raisina Young Fellow.
He spearheaded content development and programme planning for Jio’s AI Classroom initiative, which reached more than 6,00,000 participants. He has also held a faculty position at Jio Institute and served as a Product Manager at Vodafone India.
Education
Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode (IIMK)
Ph.D. Marketing (2019 – 2024)
Focus: Consumer behaviour, brand activism, digital consumption
Shailesh J. Mehta School of Management, IIT Bombay
Master of Management (MBA) (2015 – 2017)
Major/Specialisation: Operations/Marketing
Government College of Technology, Coimbatore
B.Tech., Industrial Biotechnology (2011 – 2015)
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Research interests
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Selected publications
Murthy, M. D. P., Vishnu Prasad, V., & Sreejesh, S. (2026). Exploring the new frontiers of immersive service experiences: Role of competence and warmth in the metaverse environment. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, Early View. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/cb.70170
Vishnu Prasad, V., Murthy, M. D. P., & Sreejesh, S. (2026). Embracing the pre-loved: How norms, emotions, and motives shape sustainable recommerce behavior. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, Early View. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/cb.70166
Murthy, M. D. P., Vishnu Prasad, V., & Sreejesh, S. (2025). Exploring the path to tourist well-being: Analysis of voluntary simplicity tourism engagement. International Journal of Tourism Research, 27(5). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jtr.70113
Vishnu Prasad, V., Murthy, M. D. P., Joseph, J., & Adhikari, A. (2023). What decides my purchase of non-fungible tokens? Journal of Consumer Behaviour. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/cb.2221
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Conferences
Vishnu Prasad V. & M. D. P. Murthy. (2026). Opinion under AI’s spell: Unravelling the hidden dynamics of belief change in human–LLM interaction. Paper presented at the American Marketing Association Winter Academic Conference, 2026.
Vishnu Prasad V. & M. D. P. Murthy. (2026). The hidden rhythm of buying: Detecting, predicting, and valuing consumer hot streaks. Paper presented at the American Marketing Association Winter Academic Conference, 2026.
M. D. P. Murthy, Vishnu Prasad V., W. Patri, & J. Joseph. (2025). Align or alienate? The impact of ideological confidence and message certainty in responses to brand activism. Paper presented at the Association for Consumer Research Conference, 2025.
M. D. P. Murthy, Vishnu Prasad V., R. Jain, W. Patri, & J. Joseph. (2025). Standing for a cause, stumbling at the finish: Why activism trust gains vanish overnight. Paper presented at the Association for Consumer Research Conference, 2025.
Rishika Jain & Vishnu Prasad V. . (2025). Navigating new norms: The transformation of work cultures in tech companies—An institutional logics investigation. Paper presented at the India Conference on Information Systems, 2025.
Vishnu Prasad V., R. Rishika, & M. D. P. Murthy. (2025). Signal interference in influencer marketing: How authenticity and brand fit moderate disclosure effects on engagement. Paper presented at the Gesellschaft für Klassifikation – AG Marketing Conference, 2025. Presenter: Vishnu Prasad V.
Vishnu Prasad V., R. Rishika, & M. D. P. Murthy. (2025). The hidden rhythm of buying: Why consumers shop in streaks. Paper presented at the Gesellschaft für Klassifikation – AG Marketing Conference, 2025. Presenter: Vishnu Prasad V.
M. D. P. Murthy & Vishnu Prasad V. (2025). Standing for a cause, stumbling at the finish: Why activism trust gains vanish overnight. Paper presented at the Indian Marketing Research Conference, IIM Ahmedabad, 2025.
M. D. P. Murthy & Vishnu Prasad V. (2025). Beyond the first green choice: How moral licensing shapes the long-term trajectory of sustainable consumption. Paper presented at the Indian Marketing Research Conference, IIM Ahmedabad, 2025.
Vishnu Prasad V. & M. D. P. Murthy. (2025). Brand representations in large language models: Developing benchmarks for generative engine optimization. Paper presented at the NASMEI Conference, 2025.
Vishnu Prasad V. & M. D. P. Murthy. (2025). Can technology build trust? The role of digital transparency in overcoming greenwashing skepticism. Paper presented at the NASMEI Conference, 2025.
Vishnu Prasad V. & M. D. P. Murthy. (2023). Exploring psychological factors in non-compliant account-sharing on streaming platforms. Paper presented at the European Marketing Academy Conference, 2023.
Vishnu Prasad V., M. D. P. Murthy, & J. Joseph. (2022). What decides my purchase of NFTs? Paper presented at the 16th NASMEI Conference, Chennai, 2022. Presenter: Vishnu Prasad V.
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Working papers
Working papers
Too Clean to Be Human: Benchmarking and Detecting Large Language Model Survey Respondents.
The Legibility Wedge: How AI Shopping Agents Decouple Demand Concentration from Operational Load.
Who Chooses When AI Shops? Delegation, Intermediation, and Demand Formation in Agentic Markets.
Credible but Unhelpful: The Credibility-Helpfulness Paradox in Human and AI-Generated verification.
From Peer-Production to Verification Commons: How LLMs Rewire Social Capital and Governance in Online Knowledge Networks.
Visual Saliency Analysis: Thumbnail Optimisation Framework – Computer vision saliency detection with mixed-effects models.
Exploring the impact of brand effects and transparency in influencer marketing.
Paper development invitations & invited papers
Invited to the ISJ paper development workshop – INCIS.
Invited to JMS paper development workshop – JMS conference, University of Cambridge (Received Karen Legge Bursary).
Invited to JSIS paper development workshop – INCIS.
Two invited papers, International Journal of Public Opinion Research (ABDC-A), after proposal submission.
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Courses
Introduction to AI – PGP
Marketing Research Methods – PGP
Principles of Management – PGP
AI/LLM Applications – PGP / Executive Education
Agentic AI for Business – Executive Education
Additional teaching competencies
Core Courses: Marketing Management I & II, Marketing Analytics.
Electives: AI Product Development, Responsible AI, Social Media Analytics.
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Awards and honours
Franco Nicosia Best Paper Award – Association for Consumer Research (ACR), 2025. For “Align or Alienate? The Impact of Ideological Confidence and Message Certainty in Responses to Brand Activism.”
Bala & Vasantha Balachandran Faculty Research Grant – NASMEI, 2025. For “Brand Representations in Large Language Models: Developing Benchmarks for Generative Engine Optimization.”
Sheth Foundation Marketing Research Grant – Academy of Indian Marketing (AIM) & Academy of International Business (AIB), 2025. For “Agentic AI in Inclusive Consumer Purchase Decisions” under Special Theme: Marketing in the Age of AI and Sustainability.
Raisina Young Fellow – Observer Research Foundation & Stiftung Mercator, 2026. Selected by the Asian Forum on Global Governance for emerging leaders in policy, geopolitics, and global governance.
India’s Most Employable Management Graduate – Class of 2017, InsideIIM.
Prime Minister’s Scholarship – Ministry of Defence, 2012.
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Teaching interest
Core: Marketing Management I & II, Marketing Research Methods, Marketing Analytics, Advanced Data Analytics.
Electives: Marketing in the Age of AI, Responsible AI, Social Media Analytics, Agentic AI for Business.
Methodological: Experimental Design, Causal Inference, Machine Learning for Marketing, LLM Applications.
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Work experience
Academic faculty
Assistant Professor, Marketing Area – Jio Institute, Navi Mumbai, India (July 2024 – June 2026). Course management for PGP Marketing and Digital Marketing specialisation; taught Marketing Research Methods, Advanced Data Analytics, and AI in Management; Executive Education and International Collaborations portfolio.
Administrative assignments
Led pedagogical innovation initiatives, including alignment of course structures with emerging technologies.
Coordinated institutional processes related to disciplinary hearings and Academic Council activities.
Supported student career outcomes by liaising with industry partners and Career Services.
Strengthened industrial engagement with Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Hotstar, T-Hub, and other ecosystem partners.
International Collaborations: partnership initiatives with Singapore Management University (SMU); course-level tie-ups with Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS); academic coordination with the University of New Haven; collaboration discussions with Nanyang Technological University (NTU).
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Professional positions
Vodafone India (June 2017 – September 2018)
Product Manager – Postpaid (Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh Circle). Managed postpaid product portfolio; conceptualised multi-channel marketing campaigns leveraging usage analytics; designed sustainable upselling and retention products through competition benchmarking and GTM execution.
Industry projects – MBA / pre-doctoral consulting engagements
Johnson & Johnson – Optimised manufacturing process flow; developed workforce model and predictive maintenance systems for the Mulund plant.
Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd. (Times Group) – Remodelled warehousing capacity and recommended cost savings through optimised Mill-Plant network design.
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MDPs/FDPs
Executive programmes for AI in Healthcare and AI in BFSI sectors, including a dedicated programme for the Reliance Foundation.
AI Classroom (Jio PC) – Led content and planning for the flagship ‘AI for All’ programme with 600,000+ cumulative participants.
AI for Youth (TechTrek) – Programme design and delivery for early-career and undergraduate cohorts.
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Corporate mentoring
Mentoring AI and product capstone projects in collaboration with Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Hotstar, and other industry partners.
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Reviewer experience
European Journal of Marketing.
Journal of Consumer Behaviour.
Association of Consumer Research.
IIM Kozhikode Society & Management Review.
AMS Annual Conference / World Conference – Program Committee Member.
Australian & New Zealand Marketing Academy (ANZMAC) Conference.
Academy of Management (AOM) Conference.
European Marketing Academy (EMAC) Conference.
Track Chair – American Marketing Association (AMA) Winter Academic Conference, 2026.
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Social impact
Contributed to Jio’s “AI for All” outreach, including AI for Children (Shapers) and AI for Youth (TechTrek) programmes, expanding access to AI literacy at a population scale.
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Professional service
Selected reviewing assignments across European Journal of Marketing, Journal of Consumer Behaviour, Association of Consumer Research, IIM Kozhikode Society & Management Review, AMS, ANZMAC, AOM, and EMAC.
Track Chair – American Marketing Association (AMA) Winter Academic Conference, 2026.
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Contracts, grants and sponsored research
Bala & Vasantha Balachandran Faculty Research Grant – NASMEI, 2025. “Brand Representations in Large Language Models: Developing Benchmarks for Generative Engine Optimization.”
Sheth Foundation Marketing Research Grant – AIM-AIB, 2025. “Agentic AI in Inclusive Consumer Purchase Decisions” (Special Theme: Marketing in the Age of AI and Sustainability).