# Idea Pipeline > Idea Pipeline - Skill: `ronniepinnell/idea-pipeline` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add ronniepinnell/idea-pipeline` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/ronniepinnell/idea-pipeline/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: DevOps & Infra - Author: ronniepinnell (https://skillmd.com/u/ronniepinnell) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/ronniepinnell/idea-pipeline --- # Idea Pipeline A repeatable funnel so ideas don't die in a notes file and winners don't stall before they're built. Each stage adds rigor; weak ideas get cut, strong ones get sharper, and stack/naming decisions deepen as an idea moves down-pipe. ``` capture/generate → grill → market research → evaluate → rank → graduate 00-inbox 01-ideas (exploring) 02-products 03-projects ``` ## How it pairs with the `ideate` workspace If run inside an `ideate` repo (has `00-inbox/`, `scripts/new.sh`, `scripts/promote.sh`): - Create items with `scripts/new.sh "Name"`; advance them with `scripts/promote.sh `. - Read/write each idea's `README.md` (problem, research, eval live there) and append the Status log. - Regenerate `scripts/board.sh` after changes. If run anywhere else: keep the same artifacts as plain markdown in the current dir. Don't force the whole funnel in one sitting — you can run a single stage (`--stage`), score what exists (`--rank`), or take one idea all the way through. --- ## Stage 1 — Capture / Generate - **Have ideas already?** Capture each as an item (`scripts/new.sh "…"` → `00-inbox/`), one folder per idea, problem + one-liner in the README. - **Want ideas?** Generate against a theme: ask for the domain, the user's unfair advantages/interests, and constraints, then brainstorm 10–20 framed as "for {who}, who struggle with {pain}, a {what} that {benefit}." Land them in inbox. Triage: which are worth grilling? Promote those to `01-ideas` (status `exploring`). --- ## Stage 2 — Grill (pressure-test each idea) Interrogate like a skeptical investor. Per idea (reference its README; fill gaps via `AskUserQuestion`). This is the `/mvp` discovery spirit applied per-idea: - **Problem** — whose pain, how acute (vitamin vs painkiller), how often, what they do today. - **Customer** — narrowest viable user. Reachable how? - **Why now / why you** — timing shift + unfair advantage. - **Riskiest assumption** — the one belief that, if false, kills it. How to test it cheaply. - **Wedge & moat** — the first sharp use case; why it compounds. - **Out of scope** — what you're deliberately NOT doing. Write findings into the README. If an idea collapses under grilling, promote it to `99-archive` (status `killed`) with a one-line post-mortem — never silently delete. --- ## Stage 3 — Market research (use the specialist skills) For surviving ideas, gather evidence — delegate to existing skills where they fit: - **Competitors / closest alternative** — `/competitive-scan` per serious incumbent, or `WebSearch`. Capture who exists, pricing, positioning, and the gap. - **Market size & demand** — `/market-scout` (TAM, pricing signals, ICP) or `WebSearch`. - **Deeper unknowns** — `/deep-research` for a cited report on a pivotal question. Summarize each into the README under `## Market`. Flag fatal collisions (a dominant incumbent doing exactly this) — those drop the eval score hard. --- ## Stage 4 — Evaluate (score against a rubric) Score each idea 1–5 on each dimension; note the rationale (don't just emit numbers): | Dimension | 1 ………………… 5 | |-----------|----------------| | Problem severity | nice-to-have → hair-on-fire | | Market size / pull | tiny/none → large & growing | | Founder fit / advantage | none → strong unfair edge | | Differentiation / moat | commodity → defensible | | Feasibility (you, now) | needs a team/years → shippable solo soon | | Time-to-signal | slow/expensive → cheap & fast to validate | | Competition headroom | crowded/locked → open lane | Weight to taste (default: severity ×2, advantage ×1.5, feasibility ×1.5, others ×1). Record the scored table in each README (`## Eval`). --- ## Stage 5 — Rank Produce a leaderboard across all live ideas: weighted score, the single biggest risk, and the cheapest next test for each. Recommend: **pursue / park / kill** per idea. Promote winners toward `02-products`; park the rest (status `parked`). ``` # Idea Score Biggest risk Next test 1 31/40 demand unproven 5 landing-page signups in a week 2 27/40 incumbent owns channel 10 cold DMs → 3 calls ``` --- ## Stage 6 — Graduate the winner (deepen stack + naming) For the top pick (now a `02-product`, heading to `03-project`): 1. **Name it** — run `/brand-name-research` (grills on vibe + constraints, then delivers only names that pass domain / App Store / trademark screening). Avoids the "love it → it's already an app" trap. 2. **Pick a stack** — now that scope is real, decide the stack. Match to the build: - B2C SaaS + auth → Next.js + Supabase - AI product → Next.js + Supabase + AI SDK (gateway models) - Public API → FastAPI + Postgres - Internal analytics → Next.js + DuckDB - CLI / single binary → Python (Typer) or Go Record the decision + rationale in the README (`## Stack`). 3. **Eject & scaffold** — if in an ideate workspace, `scripts/eject.sh ~/code --github / --private`, then run `/project-init` in the new repo to generate the full AI-ready scaffold. Promote the original to `03-projects` (or archive it as ejected). > Stack discussion is intentionally **late**: don't argue Next-vs-FastAPI for an idea > that won't survive grilling. Re-open the stack question whenever scope materially shifts. --- ## Output discipline - Every stage writes back to the idea's README (or a markdown doc) — the funnel leaves a trail, so a parked idea can be resumed later without re-litigating. - When comparing ideas, always show the rubric and the reasoning, not just a winner. - Surface kills and parks honestly with one-line reasons; keep them in `99-archive`. ## Judgment weave (see /judgment) - **Graduation is `/door` territory:** name and stack lock in — slow down before ejecting. - **Before project-init:** run **`/premortem`** on the winning idea.