research

The research agent handles research that needs several web searches, source checking and a written synthesis. It works in its own context window, so the searching and reading stay out of your main conversation.

When Claude Uses It

Claude delegates to this agent when a question needs several searches or when sources need checking against each other. You can also ask for it by name.

Use the research agent to find out which bodies accredit short
professional training courses in our sector, with sources.

How It Works

1. The agent clarifies the request. It confirms what information is needed and what it is for. It also asks about limits such as date range, country or industry.
2. The agent searches. It uses web search for broad discovery and reads specific pages in detail. It searches from several angles and looks for primary sources.
3. The agent checks the sources. For each main finding, it judges the source’s credibility and looks for corroboration. It notes conflicts between sources and marks claims it could not verify.
4. The agent writes the synthesis. It organises the findings into the report format below.

The agent works to a set of standards. It never invents sources or findings, and it keeps facts apart from opinions. It says when information may be out of date and when it is uncertain.

The Report

# Research: [Topic]

**Requested by:** [Context]
**Completed:** [Date]

## Summary
## Key Findings
## Sources
| Source | Type | Credibility | Notes |
## Limitations
## Recommendations

The agent returns a summary to the main conversation and highlights anything urgent or surprising. It saves the full report to a markdown file only when you ask, so say where you want it saved, for example Domains/14 Research & Development/14.1 Market Scans/. It also suggests follow-up research where it found gaps.

What It Can and Cannot Do

The agent’s tools are web search, web page reading, and reading and writing files. It has no shell, so it cannot run commands or scripts.

Note

In AI Business OS 3.0.2, nothing checks what an agent sends to the web. Keep personal details, client names and anything confidential out of your research requests. An outbound guard that checks agent requests is prepared for a future release. See Hooks Overview.

Technical Details

Item	Value
File	.claude/agents/research.md
Tools	WebSearch, WebFetch, Read, Write
Model	Sonnet
Update behaviour	Customisable. Your edits survive /update through a three-way merge

This agent searches the open web. For academic literature, with database searches, a research library and APA7 citations, see PRIMA Scholar’s research agents.