{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"082: Build CPG Faster\u2014 Stop CPG Product Chaos With One AI-Powered System with Karen Huh","description":"\u201cThe value you get out of Zucca and all the things it can do is far cheaper than what it would take to hire another person or hire an external consultant to do that work.\u201d \u2014Karen Huh &amp;nbsp; Building a CPG product should not feel like juggling spreadsheets at midnight. Teams lose time, money, and clarity when formulas, costs, and decisions are scattered across multiple locations. This conversation confronts that reality head-on and addresses why speed and focus are crucial in the food, beverage, and supplement industries right now. Karen Huh shares how two decades in CPG at companies shaped her view of broken product development workflows. That experience led her to build Zucca, an AI-powered operating system designed to unify how CPG teams ideate, formulate, cost, and scale products. Listen to hear how modern CPG teams are using AI to work smarter and move faster.   Building an AI-powered operating system for CPG product development   Why product launches break down as brands grow   How AI supports formulation, costing, and iteration   Reducing time to scale-ready formulas   Collaboration and single source of truth for CPG teams   Using AI as a teammate, not a replacement   What founders misunderstand about AI and speed   The future of AI in food and beverage innovation   &amp;nbsp; Meet Karen:&amp;nbsp; Karen Huh is the co-founder and CEO of Zucca, an innovative operating system for product development in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry, powered by AI. With over 20 years of experience, Karen has held leadership roles at Starbucks and numerous venture-backed brands, building a strong track record in product innovation and business development. Drawing on her in-depth knowledge of CPG workflows, she is dedicated to streamlining and unifying product development processes through advanced technology. Karen leads a diverse, expert-driven team at Zucca, helping brands of all sizes create, manage, and scale products more efficiently. Website&amp;nbsp; LinkedIn &amp;nbsp; Connect with NextGen Purpose: Website Facebook Instagram LinkedIn YouTube &amp;nbsp; Episode Highlights: 02:12 What Inspired Zucca 05:32 Early Exposure to AI&amp;nbsp; 11:24 Challenges and Surprises in AI Development 16:30 Zucca\u2019s Unique Features and Benefits 19:02 User Experience and Implementation&amp;nbsp; 24:59 Impact on CPG Companies 28:12 Customer Success Stories&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; 30:47 Accessibility and Pricing&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; ","author_name":"Essential Ingredients Podcast","author_url":"https:\/\/www.justinereichman.com\/podcast-episodes","html":"<iframe title=\"Libsyn Player\" style=\"border: none\" src=\"\/\/html5-player.libsyn.com\/embed\/episode\/id\/39654530\/height\/90\/theme\/custom\/thumbnail\/yes\/direction\/forward\/render-playlist\/no\/custom-color\/88AA3C\/\" height=\"90\" width=\"600\" scrolling=\"no\"  allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen><\/iframe>","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/assets.libsyn.com\/secure\/content\/197267210"}