Research Brief

This skill does NOT:

• write the final post / carousel / reel (that's essay-write / viral-text / carousel-builder / reel-builder)
• run literature reviews requiring paywalled sources (Google Scholar, Pubmed — flag those as out-of-reach in the brief)
• give real-time prices / stocks / API quotas (use a dedicated tool, not WebSearch)
• replace primary-source domain research where the user already has expertise — the brief is a STARTING point, not a final word

Use when the user wants to gather context before writing, or wants a structured handoff to the downstream content skills.

ROLE

Read the topic → choose depth + sources → run search queries → extract facts with citations → synthesize into the canonical brief structure → save to ./generated/research/<slug>.md → return the path so other skills can pick it up.

PIPELINE

1. Clarify if topic is broad. "AI" / "marketing" — ask once for a sharper angle ("AI for which audience / which use case?"). Otherwise proceed.

2. Pick depth:

   • --depth quick: 3-5 WebSearch queries, 200-400 word brief. ~1-2 min wall time.
   • --depth standard (default): 7-10 queries, WebFetch the top 3 results per cluster, 500-800 word brief. ~3-5 min.
   • --depth deep: 12-20 queries, includes Firecrawl/Exa MCP if available, 800-1500 word brief. ~5-10 min.

3. Probe available sources (see references/mcp-probe.md):

   • WebSearch — always available inside Claude Code.
   • WebFetch — always available.
   • mcp__firecrawl__* — present if the user has Firecrawl MCP installed. Best for deep-crawl scrape of a known site.
   • mcp__exa__* — present if Exa MCP installed. Best for neural/semantic search and finding non-obvious sources.
   • Gracefully degrade: if a tool isn't present, note "(skipped — Firecrawl MCP not configured)" in the Sources section.

4. Run query batches — see references/methodology.md:

   • Cluster A: foundational definitions (what is X, history, key actors). 2-4 queries.
   • Cluster B: recent developments / news (last 6-12 months). 2-4 queries.
   • Cluster C: contrarian / failure modes / criticism. 1-3 queries.
   • Cluster D: data + numbers + named studies. 2-4 queries.
   • Cluster E (deep only): primary sources, original papers, founder interviews. 2-5 queries.

5. Extract: for each result, pull facts with the source URL, distinguishing between:

   • Verified facts (≥2 corroborating sources OR a primary source)
   • Single-source claims (note as such — [single-source])
   • Quotes (named attribution + URL + access date)
   • Open questions (claims that couldn't be verified — list them as research gaps, don't fabricate confirmations)

6. Synthesize into canonical structure (see references/output-format.md):

   # <Topic>
   
   _Brief generated: <date>. Sources used: <N>. Depth: <quick|standard|deep>._
   
   ## TL;DR
   <3-sentence summary>
   
   ## Key facts
   - <fact> [#1]
   - <fact> [#2]
   - ...
   
   ## Notable quotes
   > "<quote>" — <attribution>, <publication>, <date> [#N]
   
   ## Suggested angles
   1. <angle one> — for <audience/format>
   2. <angle two> — ...
   3. <angle three> — ...
   
   ## Open questions
   - <unresolved question that came up>
   - ...
   
   ## Out of reach / requires expertise
   - <flag for things the user should verify manually>
   
   ## Sources
   1. [<title>](<url>) — accessed <YYYY-MM-DD>
   2. ...
   

7. Write to disk: ./generated/research/<topic-slug>-<YYYYMMDD>.md. Slug = kebab-case-of-topic, max 40 chars. If file exists, append timestamp.

8. Return path + 1-line summary on stdout: Brief written to ./generated/research/...md (N sources, TL;DR: ...).

MODES

• research-brief <topic> — default standard depth
• research-brief <topic> --depth quick|standard|deep — control breadth
• research-brief <topic> --sources websearch,webfetch,firecrawl,exa — restrict to specific tools (default: all available)
• research-brief <topic> --output <path> — custom output path
• research-brief <topic> --format brief|outline|article-ready — controls verbosity (200 / 500 / 1000+ words)
• research-brief <topic> --angles 3 — number of suggested narrative angles in the output (default 3)
• research-brief <topic> --lang en|ru|mixed — write the brief in that language (sources can be any)
• research-brief <topic> --for carousel|reel|post|essay|landing — bias the angles + structure toward a downstream format

REFERENCES (load on demand)

EXAMPLES

See examples/before-after.md — 3 calibration runs: standard depth on a tech topic (productivity software), quick depth on a cultural topic (a brand campaign), deep depth on a niche business topic (vertical AI in a specific industry).

CONSTRAINTS

• Cite every non-trivial claim. Inline [#N] markers tied to the Sources list. No source = put it in "Open questions" instead of presenting as fact.
• Don't fabricate sources. If WebSearch returns nothing solid, say so. A short brief with 5 real sources beats a long one with invented ones.
• Distinguish verified vs. single-source. Two corroborating sources OR a primary source → verified. One link → mark [single-source] next to the fact.
• Quote attributions need a person OR org + publication + date. Anonymous "experts say" — don't include.
• Date every source with access date. Web changes fast — note when you read it.
• Suggested angles must reference a specific downstream format (carousel, reel, essay) — generic "you could write about X" is useless.
• Open questions are mandatory for --depth standard and --depth deep. The list of things you DIDN'T resolve is half the value.
• Out of reach flag — paywalled papers, NDA-protected info, vendor-specific pricing — list them, don't fake answers.
• Output file path is always returned on stdout, last line. Downstream skills parse for --research <path> ingestion.
• Don't run the actual research if the file already exists for today's topic-slug + date unless --force-refresh was passed. Print existing path and ask if user wants to refresh.
• Language: brief body follows --lang. Sources can be any language — translate quotes when needed, keep original in a (original: ...) annotation.
• Never insert hype words ("revolutionary", "game-changing", "stunning"). The brief is dry intelligence, not marketing.
• Don't promote your own confidence. If a source is weak, say "single blog post, no corroboration" — don't pad with "industry sources suggest".

INVOCATION HINTS

When the user says any of:

• "research X", "look up X", "what's known about X"
• "gather facts on Y", "brief me on Y", "give me a primer on Y"
• "prepare research for a post / carousel / reel / video on Z"
• "what's the current state of X", "trends in X right now"
• "find sources for X", "verified facts about X"
• "I need numbers / stats / quotes on X"

RU triggers:

• «исследуй X», «собери информацию по Y»
• «что известно про X», «подготовь ресерч по X»
• «факты по теме X с источниками»
• «найди источники / цитаты / цифры по X»
• «бриф по X», «справку по X»

Defaults: --depth standard --format brief --angles 3 --lang <user-message-language>.

This skill is the upstream for carousel-builder and reel-builder — they accept --research <path> and ingest the brief automatically. Chain: research-brief "topic" → carousel-builder --research ./generated/research/topic-YYYYMMDD.md → 8 slides on the same topic with cited facts.