Where should I start the first time I use atypica?
The short answer: describe what you want to learn in one sentence, then let Plan Mode walk you through the rest. Your first study should be a small, low-stakes question you genuinely care about.
What Plan Mode actually does
You type something like "I want to test a zero-sugar sparkling coffee with young female office workers." Plan Mode asks 3–5 clarifying questions (who exactly, what aspects, any constraints), then shows you a draft research plan with timeline, sample size, and methods. You approve, tweak, or regenerate. Then AI runs it in the background.
The whole conversation takes 5–10 minutes. The actual research takes 2–4 hours. You can leave the tab open or closed — completion notification arrives by email and in-product.
A good first study
Pick something narrow where you'd be happy with any clear answer.
Works well as a first study:
- "Why are users churning from my fitness app after the free trial?"
- "Which of these three packaging directions feels most premium?"
- "What do 25-35 year-olds in tier-1 cities actually think about sparkling water?"
Works less well:
- "Help me do market research" — too vague, AI will burn rounds clarifying
- "Comprehensive analysis of our strategy entering the European market" — too big for a first run
The 5-minute flow
- Sign in at atypica.ai. New accounts get trial credits (enough for 2–3 small studies).
- Click "Start New Study" on the homepage.
- Describe what you want to learn. One or two sentences in plain language. AI asks follow-ups.
- Review the plan. Approve it, ask for changes, or regenerate.
- Walk away. The research runs itself. Check back when you get the completion notification.
What you'll see when it finishes
The result is a written report with three parts that matter most:
- Executive summary — 3–5 findings in plain language
- Actionable recommendations — specific things to do, with priorities
- Conversation excerpts — direct quotes from the AI personas, useful when you need to convince someone else
You can also export the report as a PDF or generate a share link.
What happens if Plan Mode asks something you don't know
Say so. "Not sure, help me think through it" is a valid answer. AI will either ask a sharper question, propose an answer for you to react to, or pick a reasonable default. The wrong move is making something up to keep the conversation moving — that biases the whole study.
How long the actual research takes
| Scope | Typical time |
|---|---|
| 1-on-1 interviews with 5 personas | 1–2 hours |
| Group discussion with 3–8 personas | 1–2 hours |
| Social media scan + interviews + report | 4–8 hours |
| Multi-region scan + deep validation | 1–2 days |
The system shows progress live. You don't need to babysit it.
When something goes wrong
- You don't understand a finding. Open the underlying interview in the report — it shows the full Q&A that produced the insight.
- The plan looks wrong. Cancel before execution starts (no cost). After execution, you can edit the brief and re-run.
- The result contradicts what you expected. That usually means the persona set needs to change. Ask Plan Mode to swap in different demographics, or run another round.
- Cost feels high. Simple 5-persona interviews cost noticeably less than 50-persona validation studies. Check the estimated cost before confirming the plan.
After your first study
Three things worth doing once you've seen one report:
- Save useful personas to "My Library." Anything you'd want to interview again later. Public library personas can be bookmarked the same way.
- Add to your brand context. When you describe your product, target audience, or pricing, AI remembers for future studies. You can view and edit what it has stored under Settings → Memory.
- Invite a teammate. Reports can be shared with view-only access, but a teammate who can run their own studies gets more value from the platform.
Honest limits of a first study
- 5-persona interviews won't catch everything. They're directional, not statistical. If you need certainty about a percentage ("will 40% of users buy this?"), pair the study with a real survey of 100+ people.
- AI personas don't know about your specific brand. They'll answer from generic knowledge unless you've given the system context. Upload a brief, product page, or competitor link when you start.
- Free trial credits are finite. You'll burn through them faster than you think on multi-round studies. Plan a small first run before any major research question.
Related: Plan Mode, Interview, Discussion