> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://evidano.gitbook.io/ailyze-docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://evidano.gitbook.io/ailyze-docs/troubleshooting/ai-interviewer-issues.md).

# AI Avatar Interviewer Issues

Fixes for problems creating, sharing, or running an AI Avatar Interviewer, video or voice.

This page helps you fix problems with building, sharing, and collecting responses from an AI Avatar Interviewer, whether it uses a video avatar or a voice only. Every control mentioned here is described in [AI Avatar Interviewer Settings](/ailyze-docs/reference/settings/ai-avatar-interviewer.md).

## "The Next button stays grey"

The builder will not move on until the step is complete, and the message under the button names the first thing missing.

1. Read the message, for example "Please pick an AI avatar." or "Please select a voice for the avatar."
2. For a video avatar, check you clicked an avatar card and then a voice card (not just **Preview voice**).
3. If the project has several languages, pick an **Accent** too.

## "My slug says it's taken"

The **Custom URL Slug** must be unique, so a cross and "This slug is already taken" mean someone already uses it.

1. Change a word or add a number. Use lowercase letters, numbers, and single hyphens, 3 to 60 characters.
2. Wait for the green tick before moving on.

## "I can't switch my interviewer to Active"

Going live needs a minimum wallet balance on every plan, so below it the status does not change.

1. Read the **Insufficient Balance** dialog: it shows your balance and the amount needed.
2. Click the top-up button in the dialog, or top up under **Manage Subscription**, then click **Active** again and confirm **Go live**.
3. Until then, keep testing in **Test (free)**; participants can still take the interview, marked as a test.

For the minimum and the rate, see [Plans, Limits & Credits](/ailyze-docs/reference/plans-limits-and-credits.md).

## "Participants can't start the interview"

What the participant sees tells you why.

1. "Interview Paused": set the status back to **Test (free)** or **Active**.
2. "This study has closed": the deadline passed. Click the **Closed** chip on the dashboard and set a later date or clear it.
3. "This study is full": raise or clear **Maximum number of responses** under **Configuration**.
4. "Interview Unavailable": your wallet is too low for a live project; top up.
5. "Interview link not found": check the link for typos, or copy it again from **Participants & sharing**.
6. Stuck on **Device Permissions**: ask them to open **How to enable your camera & microphone** and follow the steps for their device. A video interview can continue without the camera; the microphone is always needed.

## "The voice interview won't connect"

The voice interviewer streams audio both ways, so it needs a microphone and a steady connection.

1. "All interviewers are busy right now": wait a few minutes and click **Try again**.
2. "Microphone access was blocked" or "No microphone was found": allow or plug in a microphone, then **Retry**.
3. "This browser cannot run the voice interview": use an up-to-date Chrome, Safari, Edge, or Firefox.
4. Connection lost mid-interview: **Rejoin** continues the same interview; **Start over** begins again.

## "The video is slow or keeps reconnecting"

Weak connections struggle with video, so the participant is offered audio instead.

1. Ask them to choose **Switch to Audio Only** when **Slow Internet Connection Detected** appears.
2. For a project with many low-bandwidth participants, create it as **Voice only** instead.

## "No responses are showing"

Responses can be hidden by the table's switches, or still processing.

1. Wait a few minutes after an interview, then click **Refresh now** on the Overview or **Refresh** under **Responses**.
2. Turn off **Hide test data** to see your own test runs, and **Hide 0-duration** to see interviews with no recording.
3. Check the **Combined**, **Interview**, and **Survey** views.

## "The same person answered twice"

Responses that share an email, or come from the same device within a day, are flagged as possible duplicates.

1. Click **Review N possible duplicate sets** above the responses table.
2. Choose which responses to keep, then **Archive N selected**. Archived responses are hidden, not deleted.

## "Branching isn't working"

Survey-driven branching needs a single choice, multiple choice, dropdown, or yes/no question to branch on.

1. Add such a question on the **Design Survey** step.
2. On **Branched Interview**, pick it under **Select a survey question to use as the category**.
3. Open each branch's **Configuration required** button and write its script until it says **Configuration done**.

## "The interviewer isn't probing enough or the tone is off"

The interviewer follows your moderation settings, so weak probing or the wrong tone means they need tuning.

1. Open **Configuration**, then **Moderation** in **Optional Settings**.
2. Adjust **Probing Depth**, **Tone**, **Language Complexity**, **Answer Validation**, and **Stay on Topic**, and edit the prompts they write.
3. Add **Follow-up questions** through the gear on each question, and use **Additional Instructions for AI avatar Interviewer** for edge cases.
4. Click **Update Project**.

## "A transcript has mistakes"

Interview transcripts open in the same editor as audio transcription, where you can correct them.

1. Under **Responses**, click **View** on the transcript.
2. Use **Edit text** to correct words, or **Fix speaker identification** if turns are assigned to the wrong speaker.

For more, see [Transcription Issues](/ailyze-docs/troubleshooting/transcription-issues.md).

## Still stuck?

Run the whole participant flow yourself in **Test (free)** first: it surfaces most setup problems before you invite anyone.