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QDA Miner & WordStat 2026.1: Greater Control Over AI Processing of Sensitive Research Data May 29, 2026 - News & events


We have just released versions 2026.1 of QDA Miner and WordStat. This update introduces new options for researchers and organizations that want to use generative AI while maintaining greater control over confidential or sensitive research data.

As qualitative and text analytics tools increasingly integrate generative AI, many researchers and institutions are asking two important questions: Where does the data actually go, and how is it being used?

With QDA Miner and WordStat 2026.1, AI processing can now be directed to environments selected and approved by your organization, rather than being limited to a single vendor-controlled AI service or public cloud endpoint. This can be especially important when working with confidential or sensitive qualitative research materials.

Version 2026.1 gives researchers and organizations several options:

  • Local AI processing: Run open-weight models locally on your own computer using LM Studio or Ollama, so your data does not leave the machine.
  • Private AI environments: Connect QDA Miner and WordStat to an organization-approved private AI environment through an OpenAI-compatible server or gateway. This can include internally managed AI servers, Azure OpenAI or Google Vertex AI through a gateway, and other compatible services approved by the organization.
  • Public AI services with additional routing options: For users working with the OpenAI API, the software now includes an option to use European processing endpoints, where this is enabled for the account.
  • Administrative control over AI access: Organizations can also disable access to generative AI features and all internet-based tools through administrative settings when these tools are not permitted for a project, department, or institution.

These options are designed to help researchers, institutional review boards, privacy officers, and IT departments maintain better control over where sensitive data is processed and under which technical and contractual conditions.

The 2026.1 update is available now to all users with an active subscription and can be downloaded from our update page.

For organizations wishing to configure private servers or gateways, we recommend coordinating with your IT department or service administrator to align QDA Miner and WordStat connection settings with your internal data retention, privacy, and security policies.