Run the interview, not just the repository.
Marvin helps you manage research you have already done. Robbie runs the research for you.
Marvin started as a research repository and has since added its own AI-moderated interviewer, alongside a notetaker that can sit in on a live call. Its core strength remains the repository: tagging, searching, and finding patterns across a large body of existing research.
Robbie is an interview platform first: you write the brief, Robbie runs every conversation end to end, and the synthesis is ready as soon as the interview closes. There is no repository to build or maintain.
These tools solve different problems. The question is which problem you have.
What it looks like in practice.
| Comparison metric | Marvin | Robbie |
|---|---|---|
| Primary use | Research repository & knowledge base | Run and synthesise interviews |
| Pricing model | Per-seat (reported, custom quote) | £10 / 30 min |
| Runs AI-moderated interviews | Yes — added alongside its repository | Yes — the core product |
| Cross-study tagging & search | Yes — built for this | Basic, within your own studies |
| Synthesises interviews | Yes, from uploaded or recorded content | Yes, automatically |
| Free plan available | Yes (limited) | No minimum spend |
When Robbie is right
If you do not yet have research, Robbie generates it for you. Brief it on what you need to learn, share a link with your participants, and Robbie runs every conversation.
If you want to avoid a per-seat subscription that charges every user on your team whether they run research that month or not, Robbie charges only for completed interviews.
If you want results without managing a repository, Robbie's synthesis is ready as soon as each interview is complete.
When Marvin is right
If you have a large existing body of research, recordings, transcripts, past studies, and need a tool to help you find patterns across it, Marvin is purpose-built for that. Robbie does not offer a research repository or a transcript tagging system.
Pricing
£10 per 30 minutes of interview time. Invoiced at the start of the following month.
There are no seats, no per-user charges, and no annual billing cycle. If your whole team runs one study each quarter, you pay for the time your participants spent, not the team members who have access.
FAQs
- What is Marvin?
- Marvin is a qualitative research repository. You upload existing recordings, transcripts, and notes, and Marvin helps you tag, search, organise, and find patterns across them. It is a tool for managing research you have already done.
- Does Marvin run interviews?
- Yes — Marvin has added its own AI-moderated interviewer alongside its live-call notetaker. Its core strength, though, is still the repository: tagging, searching, and finding patterns across a large body of existing research.
- Can Robbie replace a research repository like Marvin?
- Partially. Robbie stores your interview transcripts and synthesis, and surfaces patterns across multiple studies. It is not a full repository for uploading third-party recordings or managing a broad research archive. If you already have a large library of existing research, Marvin is better suited for that.