1. What are AI-moderated interviews (AIMIs)?

AI-Moderated Interviews (AIMIs) are one-on-one interviews led by an AI conversational agent that uses large language models (LLMs) and natural language processing (NLP) to dynamically engage participants. AIMIs replicate the probing and flow of live qualitative interviews but offer scalability akin to surveys.

They can be:

• Voice-based (spoken via desktop, laptop, tablet or phone),
• Text-based (via chat interfaces),
• Hybrid (voice + check boxes).

AIMIs allow researchers to capture detailed, theme-rich responses from large sample sizes without sacrificing depth or participant experience.

2. Why choose AIMIs?

We compared them with surveys in a Comparative Study of AI-Moderated Interviews (aka “AIMIs”) and Traditional Static Surveys (G. Occhipinti, Glaut, 2024). Below the results:

2.1 Data depth and clarity

• +129% more words per response vs. surveys
• +18.6% more themes per response
• 66% of transcripts rated “better” in head-to-head comparisons with survey responses

2.2 Engagement and completion

• +56.4% higher completion rate (adjusted for data quality)
• AI-moderator was perceived as non-judgmental and easy to talk to

2.3 Cost, scale, and efficiency

• Hundreds of interviews can be run simultaneously even in cross-country projects
• Immediate access to transcripts, coded themes, sentiment and qualitative score
• 95% reduction in analysis time (read Human Highway success story)

3. Ethical and methodological principles

Transparency & consent

• Clearly state that the interview is led by an AI moderator
• Obtain consent for data usage, especially voice recordings

Privacy and data handling

• Ensure compliance with GDPR and local data regulations
• Avoid sending sensitive data through uncontrolled LLM APIs
• Store voice or text data securely, with encryption and access controls
• Rely on industry certification like ISO/IEC 27001

Human oversight

• Researchers must remain accountable for design, logic, and interpretation
• Use real-time dashboards and post-hoc audit trails for transparency

Inclusion & equity

• Prompt the moderator to be aware of diverse needs and cultural backgrounds
• Match the tone of voice of your sample prompting the AI-moderator
• Avoid bias amplification by testing the research design with synth answers
• Speek directly with hard-to-reach groups like kids 3-6, people with low literacy levels, older adults (read how Mondadori gathered responses from +1600 kids aged 3-13 with a 96% completion rate).

4. Design and implementation

Conversation design

• Use 3-5 open-ended questions per interview
• Incorporate dynamic, LLM-driven follow-up logic for elaboration
• Combine with scaled questions (e.g., ratings) for mixed methods
• Glaut has a Report builder agent that turn brief to interview questions in minutes; researchers can check them and iterate endlessly or edit it manually

Testing and safeguards

• Run and leverage synthetic answers to detect prompt failure, inappropriate phrasing, or script drift
• Include fallback logic when responses are unclear or off-topic
• Add branching logic

Check for data quality and fraud prevention agents:

• Pre-screening participants
• Force respondents to answer only through voice with Glaut ‘Voice-only mode’
• Detect uncooperative and fraudulent respondents real-time during interviews with Glaut ‘Uncooperative detector’
• Automatically flag inconsistent answers and screen them out with a ‘consistency check agent’
• Detect and screen top-notch respondents with Glaut ‘Interpretative score’

Glaut built these layers of safeguards into the process - both before and during interviews - to prevent fraud and poor-quality data from ever entering your dataset.

5. Sample Management

Choosing the right people to interview is as important as how you interview them.

For maximum flexibility and data integrity, opt for panel-agnostic software that lets you choose the best recruitment source for your research needs - whether that’s a curated community, a global access panel, or a hard-to-reach population.

Glaut integrates seamlessly with any panel provider worldwide, allowing you to control quality, cost, and speed without being locked into a single supplier.

This enables better alignment between methodology, sample, and insights especially crucial in diverse, exploratory, or international studies.

6. Data output and analysis

AIMIs provide:

• Interview duration on Glaut:
  • median: 8.26 minutes
  • media: 9.99
• Full transcripts and the possibility to hear the recording
• Automated theme extraction, sentiment scoring and verbatim interpretation using LLMs
• Structured metadata (e.g., avg. interview time, completion rate, etc.)
• Fewer unusable transcripts: 26% gibberish rate in AIMIs vs. 56% in static surveys (G. Occhipinti, Glaut, 2024).
• Report builds in minutes with the possibility to edit it manually and iterate endlessly

Analysis pipelines can deliver instant insight preview, helping teams quickly identify trends and respondent clusters.

7. Best practices

AIMIs are best used when:

• Gathering open-ended insights from large samples
• Exploring emerging topics or product feedback
• Operating across multiple countries or languages
• Needing rapid turnaround without compromising depth

Not recommended for:

• Studies involving trauma, grief, or highly emotional themes
• Populations uncomfortable with digital interfaces
• Legal or compliance-sensitive interviews where AI responses must be fully deterministic

8. Glaut best use cases

For which use cases is Glaut a great fit?

• Brand equity
• Experience (CX, EX, PX, DX)
• Asset testing
• Market entry
• Product exploration
• Verbatim coding

Both for strategic, ad-hoc research and recurrent projects (trackers).

9. Key considerations for impactful AI-moderated interviews (AIMI)

To translate innovation into reliable insight, pay attention to the following pillars:

Pro tip: treat AIMIs like a co-moderator. Your responsibility as a researcher doesn’t disappear, it’s amplified. Leverage AI to extend your reach, but own the thinking behind the questions and the narrative behind the data.

9. From insight innovation to organizational adoption

AI-Moderated Interviews aren’t just a technical upgrade, they’re a new methodology for a strategic shift. To unlock their full potential:

• Position AIMIs as a value multiplier, not a cost-cutting tool. Emphasize the ability to do better research at scale, not just cheaper or faster.
• Start with fast wins: pilot AIMIs in exploratory research, brand perception studies, or experience audits; projects where open-ended richness matters.
• Integrate with your current stack: AIMIs don’t require researchers to overhaul workflows. Integrate Glaut’s seamlessly with your own stack and panel’s.
• Champion the researcher, not the tech. AIMIs empower humans to do what they do best: ask smarter questions, interpret with empathy, and connect the dots.

10. Positioning AI-moderated interviews (and Glaut) with your clients

AIMIs aren’t just a new methodology, they’re a new mindset. When introducing Glaut and the AIMI methodology to clients, position it as a strategic upgrade to how research is designed, scaled, and delivered. Below are key positioning points to help you frame the value effectively:

✓ From cost efficiency to research elevation

Position AIMIs as a value multiplier, not a cost-cutting tool. They enable better research at scale: more nuanced data, faster iteration cycles, and inclusion of voices that are traditionally hard to reach. Emphasize depth and breadth, not just savings.

✓ Speak to outcomes, not just tools

Lead with what clients care about: richer insights, faster business decisions, stronger creative validation, and real inclusivity. Glaut helps us find the strategic business insight we’re looking for faster, enabling you to act and adapt when it matters most.

✓ Match the method to the moment

Highlight how AIMIs shine in contexts where traditional methods hit limits:

• When speed, cost, or reach is critical
• When exploring emerging markets or kids
• When clients want rich qual without lengthy fieldwork
• When inclusion (low literacy, children, multilingual samples) is non-negotiable

✓ Highlight built-in data integrity they can trust

With Glaut, you’re not just collecting data: you’re protecting it. Glaut AI-moderated interviews are equipped with advanced safeguards that actively prevent fraud and filter out poor-quality responses in real time. From uncooperative detection and consistency checks to interpretative scoring, every interview is rigorously screened before it reaches your business insights.

✓ Showcase a free, tailored pilot with Glaut

Start small to go big. Present a personalised pilot study built for their business needs. Let the velocity and quality speak: most clients are convinced once they see the quality of responses and the speed of delivery.