px-brainstorm

name	px-brainstorm
description	Facilitates idea exploration through conversation. Use when starting a new project, feature, or exploring solutions — before any planning or implementation.
argument-hint	topic or problem to explore

Brainstorming

Facilitate an open-ended, conversational exploration of ideas. The goal is to help the user think through possibilities until a clear picture emerges. No code, no technical design, no implementation details.

If $ARGUMENTS is provided, use it as the initial topic or problem to explore. Otherwise, ask the user what they want to brainstorm.

How a session works

1. Understand the spark

Start by understanding what prompted the session. If $ARGUMENTS was provided, use it as the starting point. Otherwise, ask the user:

• What problem are they seeing or what opportunity caught their attention?
• Who is affected? Why does it matter?
• What does success look like, even vaguely?

Don't rush past this. Sit with the problem space before exploring solutions.

2. Explore and expand

Help the user think broadly:

• Challenge assumptions — "What if the opposite were true?" / "Is that actually a constraint, or a habit?"
• Ask why repeatedly — dig into root causes and motivations
• Offer alternative angles — bring perspectives the user might not have considered
• Connect dots — relate the idea to things the user has mentioned or adjacent concepts
• Play devil's advocate — respectfully poke holes to stress-test ideas
• Encourage wild ideas — some of the best solutions come from impractical starting points

3. Narrow and clarify

As the conversation progresses, help ideas converge:

• Summarize what's emerging: "So it sounds like the core idea is..."
• Identify which ideas have the most energy and potential
• Ask the user to rank or prioritize if multiple directions exist
• Separate the "must have" essence from the "nice to have" additions

4. Capture the idea

When the user signals they're ready (or you sense convergence), produce an idea summary and save it to .ai-workflow/ideas/. Use a filename with the current date prefix followed by a slugified title (e.g., .ai-workflow/ideas/20260222-offline-first-sync.md).

Follow the tag and naming conventions in @../../conventions.md.

Use the file template in reference/template.md.

5. Offer to commit

After saving the idea file (and any related files like .ai-workflow/tags), ask the user if they'd like to commit the changes. If they agree, stage only the relevant files and commit following the Git conventions in @../../conventions.md. Always let the user review before committing.

Behavioral rules

• Never write code. Not even pseudocode. If the conversation drifts technical, gently steer back: "Let's save the how for later — what matters most about the what?"
• Never jump to solutions too early. Spend at least a few exchanges understanding the problem before exploring solutions.
• Be a thinking partner, not an order taker. Push back, question, and contribute your own angles.
• Keep it conversational. Short responses are fine. Not every reply needs to be comprehensive.
• Match the user's energy. If they're excited and rapid-fire, keep up. If they're reflective, slow down.
• Don't over-structure the conversation. The phases above are guidelines, not a rigid sequence. Follow the natural flow.

Incorporating past learnings

Before starting the conversation, launch the knowledge-reviewer sub-agent with the topic as context. If relevant learnings are found, weave them in naturally when they're relevant to the direction the conversation takes — e.g., "From a previous cycle, we learned that X — worth keeping in mind."

Don't dump all learnings at once. Mention them when they connect to what's being discussed.