HITIQA: Scenario Based Question Answering


In this paper we describe some preliminary results of qualitative evaluation of the answering system HITIQA (High-Quality Interactive Question Answering) which has been developed over the last 2 years as an advanced research tool for information analysts. HITIQA is an interactive open-domain question answering technology designed to allow analysts to pose complex exploratory questions in natural language and obtain relevant information units to prepare their briefing reports in order to satisfy a given scenario. The system uses novel data-driven semantics to conduct a clarification dialogue with the user that explores the scope and the context of the desired answer space. The system has undergone extensive hands-on evaluations by a group of intelligence analysts representing various foreign intelligence services. This evaluation validated the overall approach in HITIQA but also exposed limitations of the current prototype.