The AI Conversation block lets you add a short voice exchange led by an AI moderator inside an unmoderated maze. Use it to ask follow-up questions, gather context, or capture richer, more natural responses than you'd get from text-based answers alone.

When to use the AI Conversation block

The AI Conversation block works well in a few specific situations:

• As the first block in a study, to gather context before participants move on to other tasks.

• After an action-based block, such as an opinion scale or prototype test, to follow up on what just happened. The AI moderator has context on the previous block, so it can reference the participant's answer directly (for example, "I noticed you gave a three. Can you tell me what upsets you about this experience?").

• Inside a conditional path, to ask different follow-up questions based on how a participant responded earlier in the maze. For example, you can route satisfied participants to one AI Conversation and dissatisfied participants to another.

Adding an AI Conversation block

1. Open your draft maze, or create a new one.

2. In the blocks list, click Add block.

3. Select AI Conversation from the dropdown.

4. Enter your question or prompt in the title field.

5. Give a bit more context in the description field.

6. Optionally, add an image to the block.

Choosing a discussion style

Each AI Conversation block has two discussion styles. The style you choose changes how the AI moderator runs the conversation.

Freeform

In Freeform mode, you give the AI the topics you want to learn about. These are not exact questions. The AI organizes the conversation around these topics and adapts its phrasing based on what the participant says.

Use Freeform when you want a natural, flowing conversation and you care more about the insights uncovered than the exact wording used.

Structured

In Structured mode, you give the AI a script of exact questions. The AI will ask those questions as written, in the order you've set.

Use Structured when you need comparable results across participants, or when specific wording matters for your research. The AI can ask follow-up questions to dig deeper into a participant's answer. You can configure follow-up behavior in the block setting.

Adding an image to the block

You can attach an image to an AI Conversation block. This is useful for first impression tests, logo reactions, or any moment where you want the participant to respond emotionally to something they see, using their voice.

To add an image, click the image icon in the block editor and upload your file.

Discussion guidelines

Discussion guidelines are where you customize the behavior of the AI moderator. This is where you have the most flexibility to shape how the conversation runs. Templates are available to use, as needed.

You can use discussion guidelines to:

• Tell the AI to follow up when it hears a certain keyword or topic.

• Tell the AI to avoid saying certain things, such as competitor names.

• Set a specific tone or behavior for the conversation.

Context awareness across blocks

The AI moderator has context on what happened earlier in the maze. If you place an AI Conversation block after another block (such as an opinion scale or a prototype task), the AI can reference the participant's response in its questions rather than asking generic ones.

For example, instead of asking "Why did you give the score you just gave?", the AI might say "I noticed you gave a three. Can you tell me what upsets you in this experience?"

Note this behavior will not be the case for structured questions, since the script is already defined.

What participants see

Before the AI Conversation starts, participants see a preparation screen that explains what's coming next and recommends they use headphones. Headphones improve the quality of the conversation because the block speaks to participants out loud.

Once the participant clicks Next, the AI moderator begins speaking. The participant responds with their voice, and the AI follows up based on their answers. Participants can end the conversation any time. When moving out of the AI conversation, they are reminded to still think out loud for the rest of the study.

Known limitations

• You can add up to 5 AI conversation blocks per study

• You can add up to 5 questions with one structured AI conversation block

• The AI Conversation block is supported on desktop, tablet web, and mobile web only

• Because of the device requirement, the AI Conversation block cannot be used in the same maze as blocks that require a mobile app download, such as the App test block, or Website Task that requires recording on mobile; an error message will appear.

• Participants need a working microphone to complete the block

• Headphones are recommended for the best audio experience

Does Maze use your conversation data to train AI?

No. Maze does not use the data from AI Conversation blocks to train AI models. Your participants' responses, recordings, and transcripts stay within your study and are not used for model training.

Still need help?

If you have any questions or concerns, please let our Support team know — we'll be happy to help!