the short version
in underway, someone always asks the questions. usually that is underway. but you can hand the seat to someone else.
on the site it reads: "Underway can host, knowing your company and what you said last time. Or someone else asks: a co-founder in the room, or a guest joining by a link."
so there are two ways to run an episode. underway hosts, or a guest hosts. either way the result is a numbered audio episode with the questions left in, and both voices are in it.
the first way: underway hosts
this is the default, and it is the one most of the page is about.
underway hosts and it "knows your company, so it asks like it was there".
what that means in practice is on the site too. underway keeps a private memory of your series. what you said you would do by Friday. who Carlo is. that cash has come up three weeks running. so each interview picks up where the last one stopped.
the site shows an example of what it holds. the company in one line. a list of open loops, like "decide on pricing, by Friday, asked ep 45". that is why the question can be a real one and not "what did you do today?".
it also does what an interviewer does in the room. it asks out loud, one question at a time. it hears your answer and decides whether to dig in, move on or wrap up. it knows when to stop: about three minutes of you talking, then one last question about what comes next.
you do not have to prepare anything. you answer.
the second way: someone else asks
the other option is a person.
the site gives two: "a co-founder in the room, or a guest joining by a link."
a co-founder in the room is the simple one. you are both there, they ask, you answer, or the other way round. a guest joining by a link is for when the person is not in the room.
the hosts card puts it in one line: "in the room, or by a link; both voices in the episode."
that last part matters. it is not you talking to a machine with a person sitting in the corner. both voices are in the episode. what your guest asked is part of what got said.
why you would hand the seat over
the site does not tell you when to use which, so this is only how i would think about it.
underway hosting is good for the everyday episode. you want the record of your week, in order, and you want to get back to work. it already knows the open loops.
a person hosting is good when the interesting question is one only they would ask. a co-founder who was in the meeting you are about to describe. someone who has watched the whole series and wants to know why you changed course.
you can also switch. the site says so twice, once in the answer modes ("Camera, voice or screen. Choose each time.") and once on the audio card ("Switch any time."). it is not a setting you commit to for the life of the diary.
what you get either way
this part is the same whoever asks.
"a numbered audio episode, questions in, with posts for every platform written from what you said."
the questions stay in. so it sounds like an interview, not a voice note. the site's sample is episode 31 of a series called Building Polajoy, 3:52 long, and you can see the questions on it: "What came out of the pricing call?", "Why did the annual plan win?", "What changes on Monday?". each is marked asked.
every plan makes the audio episode. on Series it also goes out on your podcast feed. the podcast feed is Series and above.
there is no camera and no lighting. the site's line is "No camera. No lighting. Talk." you can do it from the sofa, the car or a walk.
what stays yours
the episode is numbered, like every other episode. the numbering does not care who asked.
and every episode stays private until you send it. that includes an episode with a guest in it. nothing goes out unless you send it.
that is the only thing i would check before using a guest link with someone you do not know well: what they said is in the episode. so it is worth telling them that first. the site does not spell out how a guest is invited or what they agree to, so i will not guess at it here.
faqs
can someone else ask the questions instead of underway?
yes. the site says "Or someone else asks: a co-founder in the room, or a guest joining by a link."
does the guest's voice end up in the episode?
yes. the hosts card says "both voices in the episode".
what does underway know when it hosts?
your company, and what you said last time. it keeps a private memory of your series, so each interview picks up where the last one stopped.
do i need a camera?
not for this. the audio episode is "No camera. No lighting. Talk." you can switch any time.
do the questions stay in the episode?
yes. it is a numbered audio episode with the questions in.
is the episode public?
no. every episode stays private until you send it.
do i need a paid plan?
every plan makes the audio episode. the podcast feed is Series and above.
where to go next
the audio-only version, with no camera: /podcast-no-camera.
how the interview decides what to ask next: /the-interview-is-live-not-a-form.
how it remembers the last episode: /founder-diary-that-remembers-last-night.
a first episode, start to finish: /first-episode.
one line for the series
underway can ask the questions. or your co-founder can. or a guest, by a link. the episode is the conversation, and it is yours.