Outset

Outset is a research platform that uses artificial intelligence to moderate qualitative interviews at scale, combining conversational AI, behavioral intelligence, and emotional analysis. The platform is designed to replace traditional one-on-one interviews and survey-based research by enabling organizations to conduct deep, contextual conversations with large numbers of participants simultaneously. It listens to verbal responses, analyzes facial expressions and micro-expressions through video, and tracks behavioral cues such as hesitation, tone shifts, and body language. This multimodal approach allows researchers to capture not only what participants say, but also how they say it and what they do in real time, bridging the gap between stated preferences and actual behavior. The platform offers a Visual Intelligence suite, which interprets visual stimuli presented during sessions—such as product prototypes, advertisements, or website layouts—and correlates participants' eye movements, gaze patterns, and emotional reactions to specific elements. This feature is particularly useful for UX testing, packaging design, and ad copy evaluation. Outset also includes an AI moderator that adapts the conversation flow based on participant responses, probing deeper into unexpected answers, redirecting off-topic digressions, and maintaining engagement over sessions that can last up to 30 minutes per participant. Researchers can deploy studies to hundreds or thousands of respondents in a single wave, with the AI conducting each interview individually in natural language. The system automatically transcribes and tags every utterance, extracts themes and sentiment, and generates structured reports with visual dashboards. It supports multiple languages and can be integrated with existing