/deep-research — Multi-source research with archive

Plans, executes, and synthesizes research from multiple sources. Archives the output so the corpus compounds.

Step 1 — Frame the question

Restate the research question in one tight sentence. If ambiguous, ask the user:

• What's the decision this research will inform?
• What's the minimum useful answer? (Saves over-researching.)
• Any sources to prioritize or avoid?

Output: Research question: <one sentence>

Step 2 — Plan the sources

Pick from this menu based on the question type. Note which sources you'll hit and why.

Run discovery passes in parallel where possible. Sequential only when one source needs another's output (e.g., agent-browser a URL discovered by WebSearch).

Step 3 — Execute discovery

Run each chosen source. For each result, capture:

• The source (URL or system)
• 1–3 sentence summary of what was said
• Date / recency
• Confidence in the source (high/medium/low)

Don't synthesize yet — just collect.

Step 4 — Synthesize

1. Group findings by theme or sub-question
2. Contradiction check — flag anywhere sources disagree. Don't average them; surface the disagreement.
3. Confidence: high (multiple independent sources agree), medium (one strong source or several weak), low (single anecdote or speculation)
4. Gaps: what would change the answer? What's NOT in the corpus?

Step 5 — Output the brief

Use this template:

# Research: <question>

**Date:** <YYYY-MM-DD>
**Decision this informs:** <one line>
**Confidence overall:** high / medium / low

## TL;DR
<2–4 sentences with the answer>

## Key findings

### 1. <Finding>
<2–4 sentences>. Sources: [1], [3], [5]

### 2. <Finding>
...

## Contradictions / uncertainty
- <where sources disagree, with each side cited>

## Gaps
- <what's missing from the corpus>
- <what to research next to close the gap>

## Recommended next steps
1. <action>
2. <action>

## Sources
[1] <Title> — <URL or system> (<date>) — <confidence>
[2] ...

Step 6 — Archive

Archives live in ${MAKERSKILLS_CONFIG:-$HOME/.config/makerskills}/deep-research/archive/ (create the directory if missing). Never write archives inside the skill's own folder — skill installs and upgrades re-sync from source and wipe anything saved there. Migration: if this skill's folder contains an old references/research-archive/ with user entries, move those files into the archive directory first.

Write the brief to <archive dir>/<YYYY-MM-DD>-<slug>.md so it's grep-able forever. Slug = kebab-case of the topic.

Also append a one-line entry to <archive dir>/INDEX.md (create if missing):

- 2026-06-15 — [<topic>](./<filename>.md) — <one-line TL;DR>

Step 7 — Surface

After archiving:

• Show the full brief in chat
• Tell the user the archive path
• Offer: "Push to Notion or save to a project's docs?"

Composes with

• business-brainstorm — calls this skill during the market validation step
• /domain — when research includes "is the .com available"
• /last30days — one of the data sources

Notes on quality

• Always cite. Every claim in the brief needs a source pointer.
• Recency matters — note dates on each source. For fast-moving topics (AI, startups), de-weight sources >12 months old.
• Don't trust a single source for high-stakes claims. Re-search until you have at least 2 independent corroborations or surface the uncertainty.
• No padding. If the answer is one paragraph, return one paragraph. The template is a maximum, not a minimum.