AI Moderator

Also known as: AI-driven Moderation, Virtual Moderator, Automated Qualitative Research

An AI agent that conducts interviews or focus groups autonomously, asking probing questions and adapting the guide based on responses.

An AI Moderator is an artificial intelligence system—typically based on an LLM with conversational capabilities—designed to conduct qualitative research sessions such as in-depth interviews (IDIs) or focus groups autonomously or semi-autonomously.

Unlike a human moderator who can conduct 5-6 interviews per day, an AI moderator can conduct hundreds of conversations simultaneously, at any time and in multiple languages. This democratizes access to qualitative insights at scale.

In 2026, the best AI moderation systems can ask relevant probing questions ('Why do you say that?', 'Can you give me an example?'), detect superficial responses and probe deeper, and adapt the guide based on the conversation flow.

Atlantia uses AI moderation to enrich its quantitative studies with layers of qualitative insight without significantly increasing project timelines or costs.