Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Research Idea Creator agent skill (idea-creator)
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The Research Idea Creator is an agent skill that takes a broad research direction and turns it into a ranked list of concrete, publishable-looking ideas. This guide explains what an agent skill is, how to install the idea-creator skill, how to trigger it with plain requests, and what it needs before it will run properly. By the end you will know whether it fits your workflow and how to start a session.
Research Idea Creatorwanshuiyin/Auto-claude-code-research-in-sleep · MIT Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Download the idea-creator ZIP from this page and unzip it.
- 2Place the skill folder. Move the unzipped folder into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder.
- 3Check requirements. Confirm you have a compatible agent runtime, the ARIS helper files, and Python 3 available.
- 4Open your agent session. Start the agent in the environment where the skill is installed.
- 5Make a natural request. Ask for ideas on a broad research direction, such as 'brainstorm ideas for X'.
- 6Review the ranked ideas. Read the survey, candidates and ranking, then check novelty and feasibility yourself.
What the idea-creator skill makes the agent do
Once installed, the agent takes a broad research topic from you and works through a multi-phase process. It surveys the landscape with web search, brainstorms candidate ideas with a secondary reviewer model, checks novelty, and ranks the ideas.
It can also plan small pilot experiments under a per-idea and total GPU-hour budget, and it can read an optional research wiki if one exists. The skill depends on other ARIS sub-skills, such as novelty checking and experiment running, which are referenced but not included in this skill folder.
- Landscape survey via web search
- Candidate idea brainstorming with a secondary reviewer
- Novelty checking (delegated to other skills)
- Ranking of ideas
- Optional pilot experiments with GPU-hour budgets
- Optional reading of a research wiki
Install the idea-creator skill
Download the ZIP for this skill from this page and unzip it. For a personal install, place the unzipped skill folder in ~/.claude/skills/. For a single project, place it in that project's .claude/skills/ folder.
In the Claude apps, you can instead upload the skill under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
- Personal install: ~/.claude/skills/
- Project install: .claude/skills/ inside your project
- Claude apps: Settings → Capabilities → Skills
Trigger the skill with natural requests
You do not need a special command. The skill is meant to activate when you ask for ideas in plain language. The description lists phrases such as 'brainstorm ideas', 'generate research ideas', 'what can we work on', and 'find ideas', and it also triggers when you want to explore a research area for publishable directions.
Give a specific broad direction, not a single finished question. The skill works from the topic you provide.
- "Brainstorm ideas for efficient fine-tuning of small language models."
- "Generate research ideas on retrieval for scientific claims."
- "What can we work on in federated learning for healthcare?"
- "Explore the research area of tool-using agents for publishable directions."
Know what the skill needs before you run it
The skill is not self-contained. Its source states that it needs a Codex agent environment, or a compatible agent runtime, because its reviewer uses spawn_agent and send_input. It also needs the referenced ARIS helper files (shared-references, research_wiki.py, threat_scan.py) installed alongside it.
Other requirements depend on which phases you use: Python 3 for helper scripts, GPU access if pilot experiments run, and web search access for the landscape survey.
- Codex agent environment or a compatible agent runtime
- ARIS helper files (shared-references, research_wiki.py, threat_scan.py) installed alongside the skill
- Python 3 for helper scripts
- GPU access if pilot experiments are run
- Web search access for the landscape survey phase
Safety notes: scripts and network access
This skill runs scripts and uses the network. The wiki step runs a threat scanner on the research wiki query pack before the agent reads it, and skips wiki context if the scan fails or the pack is blocked. Ideation then continues without it.
Review the skill files before running them, and check which network-based searches and reviewer calls will be made in your environment.
- Runs scripts: yes
- Uses network: yes
- Wiki query packs are scanned before being read; a failed scan skips wiki context
- Pilot experiments use GPU time within set budgets
Tips for better idea sessions
Start with a focused area. A narrow direction produces more usable candidates than a field name alone. Expect the process to be slow, since it runs several phases and reviewer passes.
Treat the ranking as a starting point. The ranking is produced by an AI reviewer, and novelty is checked by other skills, so an expert should verify any idea before you commit to it.
- Narrow the topic before you ask
- Keep the GPU budget small when testing ideas
- Verify top-ranked ideas with domain experts and a manual literature search
What people use it for
- Finding publishable directions in a new research area before writing a proposal
- Running a structured brainstorm followed by a second-opinion review of candidate ideas
- Generating idea candidates as the first stage of a larger ARIS research pipeline
- Planning small pilot experiments under a GPU-hour budget before committing to an idea
Frequently asked questions
How do I install the idea-creator skill?
Download the ZIP from this page and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder. In the Claude apps, you can upload it under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
What does the idea-creator skill require?
It requires a Codex agent environment or a compatible agent runtime, the referenced ARIS helper files (shared-references, research_wiki.py, threat_scan.py), Python 3, and web search access. GPU access is needed only if you run pilot experiments.
Is the idea-creator skill free?
The skill is listed under the MIT licence. This page does not state pricing for any other services it might rely on.
Does the skill run scripts or use the internet?
Yes. The skill runs scripts and uses the network, for example for web search during the landscape survey and for the wiki scanning step.
Why does the skill need other ARIS skills?
Phases such as novelty checking and experiment running are referenced by the skill but not included in its folder, so those phases depend on the other ARIS skills being available.
Can I use this instead of a quick brainstorm?
A quick brainstorm is usually better served by a simpler prompt. This skill is a long, multi-phase workflow with reviewer agents and pilots, so it is heavier and slower.
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Our verdict
The idea-creator skill suits researchers, PhD students and teams who want a structured brainstorm, a second-opinion review and a path into the ARIS pipeline. It is a poor fit for quick brainstorming, for anyone without Codex or the ARIS helper files, or for anyone who expects a guaranteed-novel idea, since ideas still need expert verification.
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