AI Peer Network: AI and Qualitative Research

Join Tech4Good South West for our next session with Steve Powell, Gabriele Caldas and Naomi Tyrrell to explore AI and qualitative research.

Steve and Gabriele will demonstrate how purpose-built AI can help charities and not for profits conduct high-quality interviews and make sense of the results using their Qualia tool

Naomi an AI Trainer & Risk-Aware AI Implementation Specialist for research and evaluation will cover ethics, safety and responisble use of AI in research.

The problem: depth versus scale

Charities and not for profits often face a frustrating choice:

• Shallow surveys that are easy to distribute

• Or rich, in-person interviews that are too expensive to scale

As a result, much of the sector’s vital lived experience data either goes uncaptured or remains buried in transcripts that no one has time to properly analyse.

This session explores whether conversational AI can help bridge that gap.

The tool: QualiaInterviews

Steve will introduce Qualia, an AI-driven interviewing tool designed to conduct natural, open-ended conversations with stakeholders.

Unlike a rigid survey, Qualia adapts its questions based on what the respondent says. This allows for deeper exploration of impact, challenges, and change as the conversation unfolds.

What we will cover

Ease of use

How to set up an AI interviewer that works across devices, speaks multiple languages, and can be deployed quickly.

Better data

Why some respondents are more candid with an automated interviewer than a human – and what that means for capturing honest feedback.

Instant analysis

How to move from raw chat transcripts to automated summaries and causal maps that show what is really changing on the ground.

Safety and ethics

Managing GDPR and data privacy, and addressing the risks of over-automation or “black box” systems.

Human in the loop

Ensuring AI acts as a tireless research assistant, while researchers and practitioners remain responsible for interpretation and final reporting.

Getting started

We’ll share practical steps for piloting conversational AI in your next evaluation project, including how to maintain transparency and trust with your community.