Agent skill

Web Research

by Juncai22 in Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning

A skill your agent uses for requests related to web research; it provides a structured approach to conducting comprehensive web research

Apache-2.0Auto-check passedResearch & Science

Install Web Research

skills CLI
$ npx skills add Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning --skill web-research -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning web-research --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/spring-ai-alibaba-agent-example/skills-agent-example/skills/web-search .claude/skills/web-research && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
web-research
GitHub stars
123
Used in
2 other repos
Token cost
~1.1k tokens
SKILL.md length
479 words
Files
1
Skills in repo
4
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
Apache-2.0

At a glance

A skill your agent uses for requests related to web research; it provides a structured approach to conducting comprehensive web research

  • Works in 3 steps: Create and Save Research Plan → Delegate to Research Subagents → Synthesize Findings
  • Requests related to web research
  • SKILL.md covers When to Use This Skill, Research Process, Available Tools and Research Subagent Configuration, plus 1 more section
  • Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md

What it does

Web Research is an agent skill from Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning. Use this skill for requests related to web research; it provides a structured approach to conducting comprehensive web research

Its SKILL.md is about 1.1k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts.

It sits in Research & Science, covering Deep research, Subagents and Web search. The licence is Apache-2.0.

When your agent uses it

  • Requests related to web research
  • It provides a structured approach to conducting comprehensive web research

Example prompts

  • “/web-research”

Workflow steps

3 steps, taken from the step headings in SKILL.md.

  1. Create and Save Research Plan
  2. Delegate to Research Subagents
  3. Synthesize Findings

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit ba09fd5. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

  • Tool permissions

    Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md.

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    No URLs in SKILL.md.

    From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

  • Credentials

    Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.

    From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Web Research loads about 1.1k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 35 tokens; SKILL.md has 479 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~35
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~1.1k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning at commit ba09fd5, republished under its Apache-2.0 licence (© Juncai22). 479 words, ~1,077 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/web-research/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).
name
web-research
description
Use this skill for requests related to web research; it provides a structured approach to conducting comprehensive web research

Web Research Skill

This skill provides a structured approach to conducting comprehensive web research using the task tool to spawn research subagents. It emphasizes planning, efficient delegation, and systematic synthesis of findings.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when you need to:

  • Research complex topics requiring multiple information sources
  • Gather and synthesize current information from the web
  • Conduct comparative analysis across multiple subjects
  • Produce well-sourced research reports with clear citations

Research Process

Step 1: Create and Save Research Plan

Before delegating to subagents, you MUST:

  1. Create a research folder - Organize all research files in a dedicated folder relative to the current working directory:

    mkdir research_[topic_name]

    This keeps files organized and prevents clutter in the working directory.

  2. Analyze the research question - Break it down into distinct, non-overlapping subtopics

  3. Write a research plan file - Use the write_file tool to create research_[topic_name]/research_plan.md containing:

    • The main research question
    • 2-5 specific subtopics to investigate
    • Expected information from each subtopic
    • How results will be synthesized

Planning Guidelines:

  • Simple fact-finding: 1-2 subtopics
  • Comparative analysis: 1 subtopic per comparison element (max 3)
  • Complex investigations: 3-5 subtopics
Step 2: Delegate to Research Subagents

For each subtopic in your plan:

  1. Use the task tool to spawn a research subagent with:

    • Clear, specific research question (no acronyms)
    • Instructions to write findings to a file: research_[topic_name]/findings_[subtopic].md
    • Budget: 3-5 web searches maximum
  2. Run up to 3 subagents in parallel for efficient research

Subagent Instructions Template:

Research [SPECIFIC TOPIC]. Use the web_search tool to gather information.
After completing your research, use write_file to save your findings to research_[topic_name]/findings_[subtopic].md.
Include key facts, relevant quotes, and source URLs.
Use 3-5 web searches maximum.
Show full SKILL.md (242 more words)Show less
Step 3: Synthesize Findings

After all subagents complete:

  1. Review the findings files that were saved locally:

    • First run list_files research_[topic_name] to see what files were created
    • Then use read_file with the file paths (e.g., research_[topic_name]/findings_*.md)
    • Important: Use read_file for LOCAL files only, not URLs
  2. Synthesize the information - Create a comprehensive response that:

    • Directly answers the original question
    • Integrates insights from all subtopics
    • Cites specific sources with URLs (from the findings files)
    • Identifies any gaps or limitations
  3. Write final report (optional) - Use write_file to create research_[topic_name]/research_report.md if requested

Note: If you need to fetch additional information from URLs, use the fetch_url tool, not read_file.

Available Tools

You have access to:

  • write_file: Save research plans and findings to local files
  • read_file: Read local files (e.g., findings saved by subagents)
  • list_files: See what local files exist in a directory
  • fetch_url: Fetch content from URLs and convert to markdown (use this for web pages, not read_file)
  • task: Spawn research subagents with web_search access

Research Subagent Configuration

Each subagent you spawn will have access to:

  • web_search: Search the web using Tavily (parameters: query, max_results, topic, include_raw_content)
  • write_file: Save their findings to the filesystem

Best Practices

  • Plan before delegating - Always write research_plan.md first
  • Clear subtopics - Ensure each subagent has distinct, non-overlapping scope
  • File-based communication - Have subagents save findings to files, not return them directly
  • Systematic synthesis - Read all findings files before creating final response
  • Stop appropriately - Don't over-research; 3-5 searches per subtopic is usually sufficient

© Juncai22, Apache-2.0. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

Just SKILL.md in spring-ai-alibaba-agent-example/skills-agent-example/skills/web-search of Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit ba09fd5

Used in 2 other repositories

We found 9 copies of this SKILL.md (exact, near-identical or edited) in other folders, from 2 other GitHub owners. This page covers the copy in Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning, which our catalogue first saw on October 7, 2026.

Compare with similar skills

Web Research next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Web Research compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Web Research this skillJuncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning1232 repos~1.1kAutomated safety check: PassApache-2.0
Deep Researchasgeirtj/system_prompts_leaks69k—~3.3kAutomated safety check: PassCC0-1.0
Web Researchbrycewang-stanford/Auto-Empirical-Research-Skills4.5k—~819Automated safety check: PassCustom licence
Argo Search and Verificationtaxueseek/argo186—~1.2kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Live Researchbrightdata/skills264—~1.8kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Weekly Signal DiffNateBJones-Projects/OB14.7k—~1.7kAutomated safety check: PassCustom licence

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Questions about Web Research

What does Web Research do?

A skill your agent uses for requests related to web research; it provides a structured approach to conducting comprehensive web research. Web Research is an agent skill from Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning.

When should I use Web Research?

Web Research fits situations like: requests related to web research; it provides a structured approach to conducting comprehensive web research.

How do I install Web Research in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning --skill web-research -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (spring-ai-alibaba-agent-example/skills-agent-example/skills/web-search in Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning) into .claude/skills/web-research in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Web Research in Codex?

Run `npx skills add Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning --skill web-research -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (spring-ai-alibaba-agent-example/skills-agent-example/skills/web-search in Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning) into .agents/skills/web-research in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Web Research in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning --skill web-research -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/web-research, .gemini/skills/web-research, .github/skills/web-research and .opencode/skills/web-research in your project.

What does Web Research need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Web Research is instructions for the agent only.

Does Web Research access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Web Research safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Web Research use?

Web Research is published under the Apache-2.0 licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Web Research use?

About 1.1k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 4.3k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Web Research?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Web Research: Deep Research (asgeirtj/system_prompts_leaks, 69k stars), Web Research (brycewang-stanford/Auto-Empirical-Research-Skills, 4.5k stars), Argo Search and Verification (taxueseek/argo, 186 stars) and Live Research (brightdata/skills, 264 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Web Research?

Juncai22 (a GitHub user) maintains it in Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning, which has 123 GitHub stars. The repository holds 4 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on July 17, 2026.

Source: Juncai22/spring-ai-agent-learning on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.