Ideately

Six AI personas join your session and offer outside perspectives on the ideas on the table. Each one plays a different role, from the thoughtful challenger to the connector who spots links between ideas. You can pull them in when a discussion stalls or when you want to pressure-test a popular idea before committing.

A session moves through idea collection, presentation, and voting as one connected path. The platform handles the transitions, so nobody has to stop and run the mechanics by hand. That keeps momentum going and means a facilitator can take part in the thinking instead of managing logistics.

Participants can present their ideas live and vote turn by turn, or work through a session on their own schedule. Ideas get evaluated one at a time, which forces a clearer read than a loud group conversation. The results feed straight into the summary, so you see a ranked list rather than a pile of notes.

Contributions aren't limited to text. People can add sketches, voice notes, images, video, or Figma prototypes. That matters when the idea is visual, since describing a design in a sentence rarely captures it. Mixed formats also let quieter teammates contribute in the way that suits them.

Once voting finishes, AI compiles the key themes, topics, and most-voted ideas into a summary. It removes the usual post-meeting cleanup, where someone retypes notes and tries to remember what was decided. The summary becomes a shareable record of what the session actually produced.

Ideately ships with ready-made formats including Crazy 8, Starburst brainstorming, SWOT analysis, Six Thinking Hats, and Hot Air Balloon and Sailboat retrospectives. You pick the framework and the session structure comes with it, which is a real time saver for anyone who doesn't run workshops every week.