About cookies on this site Our websites require some cookies to function properly (required). In addition, other cookies may be used with your consent to analyze site usage, improve the user experience and for advertising. For more information, please review your options. By visiting our website, you agree to our processing of information as described in IBM’sprivacy statement. To provide a smooth navigation, your cookie preferences will be shared across the IBM web domains listed here.
Publication
IUI 2025
Conference paper
Controlling AI Agent Participation in Group Conversations: A Human-Centered Approach
Abstract
Conversational AI agents are commonly applied within single-user, turn-taking scenarios. The interaction mechanics of these scenarios are trivial: when the user enters a message, the AI agent produces a response. However, the interaction dynamics are more complex within group settings. How should an agent behave in these settings? We report on two experiments aimed at uncovering user and technical requirements to support an AI agent's effective participation within a group, in the context of ideation. In the first study, participants benefited from and preferred having the AI agent in the group, but participants disliked when the agent seemed to dominate the conversation and they desired various controls over its interactive behaviors. In the second study, we created functional controls over the agent's behavior, operable by group members, to validate their utility and probe for additional requirements. Integrating our findings across both studies, we developed a taxonomy of controls for when, what, and where a conversational AI agent in a group should respond, who can control its behavior, and how those controls are specified and implemented. Our taxonomy is intended to aid AI creators to think through important considerations in the design of mixed-initiative conversational agents.