HAI Lab – Human AI Interaction Lab

At the Human-AI Interaction Lab, we support companies, organisations and research teams in developing AI solutions from a user perspective. 

Our services follow the principles of the user-centred design process – from the analysis of human needs to design, evaluation and reflection.

Before AI systems can be designed, it is essential to understand who will use them, how they will be used and why. We investigate peoples’ perceptions, expectations and experiences when interacting with AI technologies.

What we offer:

• User research and context analysis: observations, interviews and diary studies in real-world usage contexts.
• Accessibility and inclusion checks: analysis of how accessible AI interactions are for different groups.
• Stakeholder workshops: making expectations, values and trade-offs visible.

Goal: to gain a deeper understanding of users’ needs, fears and expectations when using AI.

We develop prototypes, interfaces and interaction concepts that enable users to collaborate with AI in a clear, transparent and inclusive manner.

What we offer:

• Prototyping and interface design: development of interactive interfaces and dialogue systems.
• Information design for AI: visualisation of complex (AI) processes and explanations.
• Conversational UX: design of natural language and chat-based interactions.

Goal: to design human-AI interactions that are intuitive and understandable and that foster trust.

We examine how humans actually experience, understand and evaluate AI systems.
To this end, we combine qualitative and quantitative methods from UX research and human factors. Our state-of-the-art infrastructure enables testing both under real-world conditions and in controlled environments within our Usability Lab.

What we offer:

• Usability and UX testing with a focus on comprehensibility and explainability.
• Interaction observation and eye-tracking to analyse attention and cognitive processes.
• A/B testing and prototype comparisons for evaluating different design approaches.

Goal: to ensure evidence-based optimisation of AI experiences – for systems that are transparent and accepted.

Human-AI interaction goes well beyond design. We support teams in integrating insights gleaned from research and evaluation into sustainable development processes – with a focus on impact, ethics and the future.

What we offer:

• Method transfer: supporting the development of internal capabilities in human-AI interaction evaluation.
• Strategy workshops: deriving development priorities from user feedback and research results.
• Guidelines and recommendations: translating results into concrete recommendations for action.

Goal: to foster sustainable and reflective human-AI interactions – responsibly and with foresight.

At the Human-AI Interaction Lab, we offer a wide range of collaboration opportunities for companies, start-ups and organisations. Whether in research, as part of development projects or through targeted UX services – we support you in designing and evaluating AI systems from a human-centred perspective.

Together, we develop solutions that are understandable, trustworthy and inclusive. If you would like individual advice, please don’t hesitate to contact us!

We work in an interdisciplinary and practice-oriented manner. Our projects combine scientific methods with design and UX expertise with the aim of achieving tangible results for research and application.

What we offer:

• Innovation check: we support start-ups in developing and evaluating prototypes or usage concepts.
• Innosuisse projects: we support you from the application stage right through to implementation – from preliminary studies to applied research projects in human-AI interaction.
• Usability testing: we test prototypes or existing AI applications with real users in order to optimise understanding, trust and the user experience.
• Expert evaluation: our specialists analyse your mock-ups, interfaces or dialogue systems and provide well-founded recommendations to advance them further.
• Design thinking and co-creation: in modern workshops, we work together with you to develop new ideas, interaction concepts and user experience in the area of AI.
• Lab usage: use our facilities and infrastructure for your own studies or prototype testing.

We promote practice-oriented teaching and research.
Our students address issues from the fields of technical communication, information design, usability and human-AI interaction in the form of group work, semester projects or Bachelor's theses.

Your benefits:

• Access to fresh perspectives and innovative ideas
• Collaboration with committed students and experienced supervisors
• Opportunity to contribute your own development or research questions

You can find an overview of ongoing and completed research and business service projects involving the HAI Lab here.

• LAIC Lab – Language Accessibility and Inclusive Communication | ZHAW School of Applied Linguistics
• ZHAW Digital Health Lab | ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences
• European Institute for Robotics, Automation & Resilient Systems

We look forward to hearing from you at hai-lab.linguistics@zhaw.ch.