Generate research that supports decisions, not perfunctory research reports.
When to Activate
- Research markets, categories, companies, investors, or technology trends.
- Build TAM/SAM/SOM (Total Addressable Market/Serviceable Addressable Market/Serviceable Obtainable Market) estimates.
- Compare competitors or adjacent products.
- Prepare investor dossiers before outreach.
- Stress-test assumptions before building, funding, or entering a market.
Research Standards
- Every important claim needs a source.
- Prioritize the latest data and flag outdated data.
- Include opposing evidence and downside scenarios.
- Turn findings into decision support, not just summaries.
- Clearly distinguish Fact, Inference, and Recommendation.
Common Research Modes
Investor / Fund Diligence
Collect:
- Fund size, stage, and typical check size.
- Relevant portfolio companies.
- Public investment thesis and recent activity.
- Reasons the fund is a match.
- Any obvious red flags or mismatches.
Competitive Analysis
Collect:
- Product status, not marketing talk.
- If public, collect funding and investor history.
- If public, collect growth/traction metrics.
- Distribution channels and pricing clues.
- Strengths, weaknesses, and positioning gaps.
Market Sizing
Use:
- Top-down estimates from reports or public datasets.
- Bottom-up sanity checks based on realistic customer acquisition assumptions.
- Provide explicit assumptions for every leap in the logic.
Technology / Vendor Research
Collect:
- How it works.
- Trade-offs and adoption signals.
- Integration complexity.
- Lock-in risk, security, compliance, and operational risk.
Output Format
Default structure:
- Executive summary
- Key findings
- Implications
- Risks and caveats
- Recommendation
- Sources
Quality Gate
Before delivery, ensure:
- All numbers are sourced or marked as estimates.
- Outdated data is flagged.
- Recommendations are based on evidence.
- Risks and counterarguments are included.
- Output makes decision-making easier.