source-deep-dive

Codex compatibility note:

• Invoke $skill-name: load the registered .agents/skills/<name>/SKILL.md and execute it with Codex tools; no separate Skill tool or Claude mode switch is needed. Author .claude/**; mirrors are generated.
• Track steps before execution and keep progress/evidence current. Explicit skill requests execute their protocol. Use the native question tool for required questions.
• Map foreign tool names to available host capabilities. A name mismatch needs no approval; an actually unavailable required capability stops with its step/evidence and a user question before adaptation.
• Subagent authorization: when a skill is user-invoked or AI-detected and its protocol requires subagents, that skill activation authorizes use of the required spawn_agent subagent(s) for that task.
• Preserve protocol order unless the user approves a deviation. Workflows use $start-workflow: gates stay fixed; other steps may flex with logged reasons and evidence.

[BLOCKING MUST ATTENTION] Execute declared steps in order; NEVER skip, reorder, or merge without explicit user approval. [BLOCKING MUST ATTENTION] Update task tracking before/after each step or sub-skill: in_progress at start, completed at end. [BLOCKING MUST ATTENTION] Completed steps need brief evidence; skipped steps need explicit reason; if Task tools are unavailable, maintain an equivalent synchronized step tracker.

Quick Summary

Goal: Deep-dive the prior source map into a cross-validated, source-cited evidence base (tmp/research/_evidence-{slug}.md) where every finding has source trace and confidence, discrepancies stay explicit, and no unverified single-source claim becomes fact.

Summary:

• Purpose/input: Consume prior tmp/research/_sources-{slug}.md; prioritize Tier 1-2, high-relevance, gap-covering sources; NEVER start a fresh search.
• Ordered path: (1) load/prioritize source map → (2) fetch 5-8 sources with WebFetch (hard cap 8) → (3) extract claims, data, quotes, methodology, publication date, author credentials, source type → (4) cross-validate → (5) write evidence base.
• Confidence gate: 2+ independent sources agree = high confidence; disagreement = both positions + discrepancy; one source = single source, unverified; declare 95/80/60/<60% for every finding.
• Handoff/routes: Write tmp/research/_evidence-{slug}.md with inline citations, ## Unresolved Discrepancies, and ## Gaps Remaining; a direct run uses ask user question tool for the post-completion choice only (no routing question: a direct call is an explicit skill request).

Workflow:

1. Read source map — Load tmp/research/_sources-{slug}.md; prioritize Tier 1-2, high relevance, and gap coverage.
2. Fetch top sources — Run WebFetch for prioritized URLs; maximum 8 calls.
3. Extract findings — Capture claims, data points, quotes, methodology, publication date, author credentials, and source type.
4. Cross-validate — Compare findings; distinguish agreement, discrepancy, and unique-source claims; assign confidence.
5. Build evidence base — Write structured findings, citations, confidence, discrepancies, and gaps to the output path.

Key Rules:

• MUST ATTENTION Maximum 8 WebFetch calls per invocation; prioritize Tier 1-2 sources covering gaps.
• MUST ATTENTION Every finding cites a specific source and confidence percentage; factual claims need 2+ independent sources.
• MUST ATTENTION Conflicting claims → present both + flag discrepancy; one source → single source, unverified.
• MUST ATTENTION Output the intermediate evidence base, not final synthesis; preserve discrepancy and gap sections.

Critical thinking: Be skeptical; apply critical/sequential thinking; trace every claim and state confidence (>80% to act).

Contents

• Quick Summary
• Deep Research
• Knowledge Work Rules
• Step 1: Load Source Map
• Step 2: Fetch Top Sources
• Step 3: Extract Findings
• Step 4: Cross-Validate
• Step 5: Build Evidence Base
• Next Steps
• Prompt-Enhance Closing Anchors
• Closing Reminders

Deep Research

Knowledge Work Rules

Web Research Protocol — Factual claims require 2+ independent sources. Rank sources Tier 1 (authoritative .gov/.edu/official docs) > Tier 2 (industry reports) > Tier 3 (credible blogs, cross-validated); Tier 4 is unverified and NEVER cite it as fact. Declare 95/80/60/<60% confidence; working files → tmp/research/, final output → docs/knowledge/.

MUST ATTENTION READ .claude/skills/web-research/SKILL.md for canonical research rules.

Chained run: web-research --chain=deep-dive executes Steps 1-5 below inline from this file (glue: .claude/skills/web-research/references/research-chain.md); that contract skips this file's Next Steps and keeps every gate inside Steps 1-5. A direct $source-deep-dive call runs exactly as written.

Step 1: Load Source Map

Read tmp/research/_sources-{slug}.md (web-research output). If missing or invalid, report missing input; NEVER start a fresh search.

Prioritize: (1) Tier 1-2; (2) high relevance; (3) identified gap coverage.

Step 2: Fetch Top Sources

For each prioritized source (5-8 when available; maximum 8 total):

1. Run WebFetch with its URL
2. Extract key claims, data points, quotes, and methodology
3. Record publication date, author credentials, and source type

Step 3: Extract Findings

For each fetched source, extract:

• Key claims — factual statements with specific data
• Data points — numbers, percentages, dates
• Quotes — notable expert statements
• Methodology — how data was gathered (for market reports)

Step 4: Cross-Validate

Compare findings across sources:

• Agreement — 2+ independent sources agree → high confidence
• Discrepancy — sources disagree → record both positions + flag discrepancy
• Unique — one source only → mark single source, unverified; do not present as fact

Step 5: Build Evidence Base

Write findings incrementally to tmp/research/_evidence-{slug}.md:

# Evidence Base: {Topic}

**Date:** {date}
**Sources analyzed:** {count}

## Findings

### Finding 1: {Title}

**Confidence:** {95%|80%|60%|<60%}
**Sources:** [1], [3]
**Content:** {finding with inline citations}
**Cross-validation:** {agreement/discrepancy notes}

## Unresolved Discrepancies

- {claim X from source A vs claim Y from source B}

## Gaps Remaining

- {what couldn't be verified}

---

Next Steps

Inside a workflow: when this skill runs as a step of an active workflow, skip the prompts in this section and return the result — the workflow's next step decides what runs ($start-workflow → Step Execution Protocol, Workflow-step mode).

MANDATORY IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION — NO EXCEPTIONS: After completion, use ask user question tool to offer:

• "$market-analysis (Recommended)" — Size the market (TAM/SAM/SOM), competitors, trends, SWOT, segments — the producer $business-evaluation consumes
• "$business-evaluation" — Evaluate business viability. Run $market-analysis first — this skill consumes its sized-market output as evidence and MUST NOT re-derive market sizing. Without it, every market figure must be marked N/A.
• "$knowledge-synthesis" — If synthesizing research report
• "Skip, continue manually" — user decides

External Memory: For complex/lengthy research, analysis, scans, or reviews, write intermediate findings + final results to tmp/reports/ — prevents context loss and serves as deliverable.

Evidence Gate: MANDATORY IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION — every claim, finding, and recommendation requires file:line proof or traced evidence plus confidence percentage (>80% to act, <80% verify first).

Prompt-Enhance Closing Anchors

IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION follow declared step order for this skill; NEVER skip, reorder, or merge steps without explicit user approval; inside a workflow run, $start-workflow → Workflow-step mode bounds this IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION for every step/sub-skill call: set in_progress before execution, set completed after execution IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION every skipped step MUST include explicit reason; every completed step MUST include concise evidence IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION if Task tools unavailable, maintain an equivalent step-by-step plan tracker with synchronized statuses

Closing Reminders

IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Goal: Deep-dive the prior source map into a cross-validated, source-cited evidence base (tmp/research/_evidence-{slug}.md) where every finding has source trace and confidence, discrepancies stay explicit, and no unverified single-source claim becomes fact.

IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Main path: Run all 5 steps in order: (1) load/prioritize source map → (2) fetch 5-8 prioritized sources, maximum 8 WebFetch calls → (3) extract claims, data, quotes, methodology, publication date, author credentials, source type → (4) cross-validate → (5) write the evidence base incrementally. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Route gates: A direct $source-deep-dive call is an explicit skill request and runs with no routing question; after completion, use ask user question tool to offer $market-analysis, $business-evaluation (after $market-analysis), $knowledge-synthesis, or manual continuation. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Evidence gate: Every finding cites a source number and confidence; 2+ independent sources support factual claims; disagreements show both positions; one source is single source, unverified.

IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Cross-validation drives confidence: 2+ independent sources agree → high (95/80%); disagreement → both positions + discrepancy; one source → single source, unverified; <60% → say insufficient evidence, verified: … / not verified: … — NEVER collapse conflicts. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Cap WebFetch at 8 calls; spend them on Tier 1-2 authoritative sources covering gaps; NEVER cite Tier 4 as fact. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION This deep-dive consumes the prior tmp/research/_sources-{slug}.md map; NEVER start a fresh search. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Capture publication date, author credentials, source type, and methodology per source; verify facts, quotes, and numbers against fetched sources before recording — NEVER fabricate citations. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Deliverable MUST include ## Unresolved Discrepancies and ## Gaps Remaining; NEVER hide unverifiable content. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Break work into todo tracking todos BEFORE starting; keep one in_progress; add a final review todo checking citation and confidence coverage. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Write findings incrementally to tmp/research/_evidence-{slug}.md; NEVER hold the full evidence base only in context. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Run as called and NEVER start a workflow from inside this skill; only the post-completion next-step question uses ask user question tool.

Anti-Rationalization:

Evasion	Rebuttal
"One good source is enough"	A lone source is "single source, unverified" — never high confidence. Cross-validate.
"The sources roughly agree, call it settled"	Roughly ≠ exactly. Record the discrepancy with both positions; don't smooth it over.
"I remember this stat from the page"	Re-open the fetched source and verify the number/quote before citing. Memory hallucinates.
"I'll fetch a few more to be thorough"	8-call cap is the budget. Prioritize Tier 1-2 gap-coverage, not breadth.
"I'll write the evidence base at the end"	Persist findings incrementally to _evidence-{slug}.md — a context cutoff loses batched work.

IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Every finding cites a source + confidence (95/80/60/<60%); conflicts show both positions, lone source is unverified. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Cap WebFetch at 8 Tier 1-2 calls and persist the evidence base incrementally to tmp/research/_evidence-{slug}.md. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Surface ## Unresolved Discrepancies and ## Gaps Remaining; never hide unverifiable content.

IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Follow ordered path: load/prioritize → fetch ≤8 → extract metadata → cross-validate → write required evidence sections; honor the post-completion user choice. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Cite every finding and confidence-score it; preserve disagreements and gaps; NEVER fabricate or present a lone source as fact. IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION Use the prior source map, cap WebFetch at 8, and persist output incrementally.