Research prior art for: $ARGUMENTS
Process
Search
Identify relevant sources based on context:
- •GitHub: Search for repositories matching the problem space
- •Package registries: npm, PyPI, crates.io, pkg.go.dev—infer from current project or query
- •Web search: For broader landscape understanding
Run searches in parallel. Infer the ecosystem from:
- •Current project's language/framework (if present)
- •Query terms (e.g., "React hook for X" implies npm)
- •Ask only if genuinely ambiguous
Investigation
Start with 2-3 most promising projects:
- •Read README and high-level docs to assess relevance
- •Only examine code when relevance is confirmed AND implementation details matter
- •Dispatch parallel Task agents for each project, with explicit focus areas
If initial results don't satisfy the query, expand to additional projects.
Agent dispatch example:
code
Investigate [project] for prior art on [topic]: - How does it approach [specific aspect]? - What tradeoffs does it make? - What can we learn for our use case?
Synthesis
Gather findings and produce a recommendation:
- •Identify common patterns across solutions
- •Note meaningful variations in approach
- •Infer user intent:
- •"build X" → learn patterns, inform implementation
- •"library for X" → find dependencies to use directly
Output Format
Respond in the conversation with structured markdown (not files):
markdown
## Prior Art: [Topic] ### Summary [Common patterns, key variations, recommendation based on query intent] ### Projects #### [Project Name] - **Repository**: [link] - **Relevance**: [why this matters to the query] - **Approach**: [how it solves the problem] - **Lessons**: [what to learn from it] #### [Next Project] ... ### Additional Projects (not deeply investigated) - [Project]: [one-line description] - ...
Behavior Guidelines
- •Honest reporting: Acknowledge when prior art is sparse—don't force results
- •Research only: Don't offer to integrate dependencies or modify the project
- •Ecosystem inference: Derive from context, don't require explicit specification
- •Adaptive depth: Investigate more projects if initial batch is insufficient