Skill: brennerspear/parallel-ai-research (version 1.1.0)

--- name: research description: Conduct open-ended research on a topic, building a living markdown document. Supports interactive and deep research modes. --- # Research Skill ## Description Conduct open-ended research on a topic, building a living markdown document. The conversation is ephemeral; the document is what matters. ## Trigger Activate when the user wants to: - Research a topic, idea, or question - Explore something before committing to building it - Investigate options, patterns, or approaches - Create a "research doc" or "investigation" - Run deep async research on a complex topic ## Research Directory Each research topic gets its own folder: ``` ~/.openclaw/workspace/research/<topic-slug>/ ├── prompt.md # Original research question/prompt ├── research.md # Main findings (Parallel output or interactive notes) ├── research.pdf # PDF export (when generated) └── ... # Any other related files (data, images, etc.) ``` --- ## Two Research Modes ### 1. Interactive Research (default) For topics you explore together in conversation. You search, synthesize, and update the doc in real-time. ### 2. Deep Research (async) For complex topics that need comprehensive investigation. Uses the Parallel AI API via `parallel-research` CLI. Takes minutes to hours, returns detailed markdown reports. **When to use deep research:** - Market analysis, competitive landscape - Technical deep-dives requiring extensive source gathering - Multi-faceted questions that benefit from parallel exploration - When user says "deep research" or wants comprehensive coverage --- ## Interactive Research Workflow ### 1. Initialize Research 1. **Create the research folder** at `~/.openclaw/workspace/research/<topic-slug>/` 2. **Create prompt.md** with the original question: ```markdown # <Topic Title> > <The core question or curiosity> **Started:** <date> ``` 3. **Create research.md** with the working structure: ```markdown # <Topic Title> **Status:** Active Research **Started:** <date> **Last Updated:** <date> --- ## Open Questions - <initial questions to explore> ## Findings <!-- Populated as we research --> ## Options / Approaches <!-- If comparing solutions --> ## Resources <!-- Links, references, sources --> ## Next Steps <!-- What to explore next, or "graduate to project" --> ``` 4. **Confirm with user** - Show the folder was created and ask what to explore first. ### 2. Research Loop For each exchange: 1. **Do the research** - Web search, fetch docs, explore code 2. **Update the document** - Add findings, move answered questions, add sources 3. **Show progress** - Note what was added (don't repeat everything) 4. **Prompt next direction** - End with a question or suggestion **Key behaviors:** - Update existing sections over creating new ones - Use bullet points for findings; prose for summaries - Note uncertainty ("seems like", "according to X", "unverified") - Link to sources whenever possible ### 3. Synthesis Checkpoints Every 5-10 exchanges, offer to: - Write a "Current Understanding" summary - Prune redundant findings - Reorganize if unwieldy - Check blind spots ### 4. Completion When research is complete, update the status in `research.md`: - **"Status: Complete"** — Done, stays in place as reference - **"Status: Ongoing"** — Living doc, will be updated over time **If the research is specifically for building a project:** - Graduate to `~/specs/<project-name>.md` as a project spec - Or create a project directly based on findings - Update status to **"Status: Graduated → ~/specs/..."** Most research is just research — it doesn't need to become a spec. Only graduate if you're actually building something from it. --- ## Deep Research Workflow ### 1. Start Deep Research ```bash parallel-research create "Your research question" --processor ultra --wait ``` **Processor options:** - `lite`, `base`, `core`, `pro`, `ultra` (default), `ultra2x`, `ultra4x`, `ultra8x` - Add `-fast` suffix for speed over depth: `ultra-fast`, `pro-fast`, etc. **Options:** - `-w, --wait` — Wait for completion and show result - `-p, --processor` — Choose processor tier - `-j, --json` — Raw JSON output ### 2. Schedule Auto-Check (optional) Deep research tasks take minutes to hours. You'll want to poll for results automatically rather than checking manually. **Options:** - **OpenClaw users:** See `OPENCLAW.md` for cron-based auto-check scheduling - **Other setups:** Use any scheduler (cron, systemd timer, CI job) to periodically run `parallel-research status <run_id>` and `parallel-research result <run_id>` until complete - **Simple approach:** Just use `parallel-research create "..." --wait` to block until done (works for shorter tasks) ### 3. Manual Check (if needed) ```bash parallel-research status <run_id> parallel-research result <run_id> ``` ### 4. Save to Research Folder Create the research folder and save results: ``` ~/.openclaw/workspace/research/<topic-slug>/ ├── prompt.md # Original question + run metadata ├── research.md # Full Parallel output ``` **prompt.md** should include: ```markdown # <Topic Title> > <Original research question> **Run ID:** <run_id> **Processor:** <processor> **Started:** <date> **Completed:** <date> ``` **research.md** contains the full Parallel output, plus any follow-up notes. --- ## PDF Export **All PDFs go in the research folder** — never save to `tmp/`. Whether using `export-pdf`, the browser `pdf` action, or any other method, the output path must be `research/<topic-slug>/`. Use the `export-pdf` script to convert research docs to PDF: ```bash export-pdf ~/.openclaw/workspace/research/<topic-slug>/research.md # Creates: ~/.openclaw/workspace/research/<topic-slug>/research.pdf ``` For browser-generated PDFs (e.g. saving a webpage as PDF): ``` browser pdf → save to research/<topic-slug>/<descriptive-name>.pdf ``` **Note:** Tables render as stacked rows (PyMuPDF limitation). Acceptable for research docs. --- ## Commands - **"new research: <topic>"** - Start interactive research doc - **"deep research: <topic>"** - Start async deep research - **"show doc"** / **"show research"** - Display current research file - **"summarize"** - Synthesis checkpoint - **"graduate"** - Move research to next phase - **"archive"** - Mark as complete reference - **"export pdf"** - Export to PDF - **"check research"** - Check status of pending deep research tasks --- ## Document Principles - **Atomic findings** - One insight per bullet - **Link everything** - Sources, docs, repos - **Capture context** - Why did we look at this? - **Note confidence** - Use qualifiers when uncertain - **Date important findings** - Especially for fast-moving topics --- ## Setup See `SETUP.md` for first-time installation of: - `parallel-research` CLI - PDF export tools (pandoc, PyMuPDF)


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