Concepts

What is a Pulse?#

A Pulse is an AI-powered conversational form. Instead of static fields a respondent fills in alone, a Pulse has an intelligent conversation with them — adapting questions based on what they say, following interesting threads, and asking the right follow-ups.

You define the intention — what you want to learn — and the AI handles the rest. No flowcharts, no branching logic, no conditional rules to maintain.

Each Pulse gets a shareable link. Share it via email, embed it on a page, or send it from your app via the API. Anyone who opens it starts a Conversation.

What is a Conversation?#

Each time someone responds to your Pulse, it creates a Conversation — a back-and-forth dialogue between the respondent and the AI. Conversations collect rich, contextual information that static forms never could.

Respondents can type their answers or use voice dictation — Unformal transcribes speech in any language via Whisper. Most people find talking faster and more natural than typing for open-ended questions.

What is an Echo?#

When a conversation completes, the AI analyzes the entire transcript and produces an Echo — a structured summary that distills everything said into actionable output.

The Echo is what you actually work with. It contains:

• —Structured fields — The specific data points you asked for — extracted and typed (see Output Fields below)
• —Summary — A concise narrative of the conversation
• —Key quotes — The most important things the respondent said, verbatim
• —Subtext — What the AI inferred beyond the literal answers — hesitations, enthusiasm, unstated concerns
• —Sentiment score — A 1–10 rating of how the respondent felt about the topic

{
  "echo": {
    "fields": {
      "budget_range": "$50k–100k",
      "timeline": "Q3 2026",
      "pain_points": ["manual data entry", "no single source of truth"]
    },
    "summary": "Strong fit. Budget and timeline aligned.",
    "keyQuotes": ["We spend 3 hours daily on data entry"],
    "subtext": "Enthusiastic but worried about internal buy-in.",
    "sentimentScore": 7
  }
}

Interview Mode vs Extract Mode#

Unformal supports two conversation modes. Same output structure, different experience for the respondent.

Tones#

The tone controls how the AI talks to your respondent. Pick one that fits your audience and context. You can override it any time in the Pulse settings.

Extract mode defaults to Casual — a brain dump feels less formal when the AI matches that energy.

Output Fields (Echo Schema)#

Output fields define the structured data the AI should extract from each conversation. They're the bridge between a free-flowing dialogue and the clean, typed data you actually need.

Each field has:

"outputFields": [
  {
    "name": "budget_range",
    "type": "string",
    "description": "Estimated annual budget range they can work with"
  },
  {
    "name": "decision_maker",
    "type": "boolean",
    "description": "Whether this person can make the buying decision alone"
  },
  {
    "name": "pain_points",
    "type": "array",
    "description": "List of their top 3 challenges or frustrations"
  },
  {
    "name": "timeline_weeks",
    "type": "number",
    "description": "How many weeks until they need a solution"
  }
]

Fields are auto-generated from your intention when you click "Generate" in the Pulse creator. You can adjust them before publishing.

Resonance#

Once a Pulse has 3 or more completed conversations, Unformal generates Resonance — aggregate intelligence across all responses.

A single conversation tells you what one person thinks. Resonance tells you what everyone thinks — and where they agree, disagree, or feel differently.

Resonance is visible on the Studio Resonance tab. It updates automatically as new conversations complete.

Credits#

Every completed conversation costs 1 credit. In-progress or abandoned conversations are free.

Every new account starts with 50 free credits. After that, buy credits in packs — no subscription, no per-seat pricing.

Credits don't expire. Buy them when you need them, use them at your own pace.