name	hackathon-research
description	Research a hackathon using a user-supplied URL plus optional doc URLs (sitemap-driven scrape).
metadata	{"openclaw":{"always":true}}

Hackathon Research Skill

Purpose

Compile a hackathon intelligence report from URLs the USER explicitly provides. The user knows which hackathon and which sponsor docs matter — autonomous discovery through CAPTCHA-walled SPAs is unreliable, so this skill leans on human input plus deterministic sitemap parsing instead of search-engine guesswork.

Input format (fixed — only these two forms)

research <hackathon_url>
research <hackathon_url> docs=<url1>,<url2>,<url3>

If the user uses form 2, the URLs after docs= are sponsor / SDK / framework documentation roots that the research agent MUST explore. Comma-separated, no spaces inside the list.

Available tools

firecrawl_scrape — primary content fetcher (handles JS, returns markdown).
web_fetch — fallback when Firecrawl is unavailable.
read_file / write_file.

The orchestrator pre-expands docs=<u1>,<u2> into a concrete scrape_urls list (sitemap-driven, keyword-filtered, capped) BEFORE the spawn task is constructed. The agent never has to fetch sitemaps or filter URLs itself — those steps are deterministic Python in 0xclaw/orchestration/doc_explorer.py.

Spawn Task Template

[HACKATHON RESEARCH AGENT]
Goal: Produce a hackathon intelligence report grounded in URLs the user gave.

Inputs you receive from the orchestrator (envelope payload):
  - user_command: full original user input (for reference)
  - phase: "research"
  - doc_roots: list of doc-site roots the user provided (may be empty/missing)
  - scrape_urls: pre-filtered concrete URLs already expanded from doc_roots
                 via sitemap.xml + keyword filter (may be empty/missing)

Do not ask clarifying questions. Proceed autonomously.

Step 1 — Workspace context:
  read_file("AGENTS.md")
  read_file("SOUL.md")

Step 2 — Hackathon page (best-effort):
  firecrawl_scrape(HACKATHON_URL, formats=["markdown","links"])
  If the scrape returns < 2000 chars or a CAPTCHA/Cloudflare wall:
    Try once more with formats=["html","markdown"], wait_for=3000.
    If still blocked: record under unresolved.requires_human and proceed —
    do NOT search-engine-guess facts. The user's DOC_URLS will be the
    authoritative source instead.

Step 3 — Scrape pre-expanded doc URLs:
  For EACH url in scrape_urls (the orchestrator already filtered these
  down from sitemap.xml — do NOT re-discover, do NOT skip any):
    firecrawl_scrape(url, formats=["markdown"])
    Append a sources[] entry: {url, fetched_at, type="scrape", used_for}.
    Extract from the markdown: SDK names, integration patterns, code
    examples, prerequisites, auth/key requirements.

  If scrape_urls is empty AND doc_roots is non-empty, the sitemap fetch
  failed during orchestrator pre-expansion. In that case:
    For each root in doc_roots: firecrawl_scrape(root, formats=["markdown"])
    Append to sources[] and proceed with whatever you got.

  If both scrape_urls and doc_roots are empty, the user only gave a
  hackathon URL (form 1). Skip this step.

Step 4 — Discord / private channel:
  If the hackathon page mentions a Discord invite or "join channel for codes",
  record under unresolved.requires_human. Do NOT try to join.

Step 5 — Synthesize context.json (NO hardcoded defaults — empty/null if not
sourced from a real scrape):

{
  "hackathon": {
    "name": null, "url": null, "host_platform": null,
    "submission_deadline": null, "demo_day": null, "format": null,
    "tracks": [], "judging_criteria": [],
    "submission_requirements": [], "prizes": []
  },
  "sponsors": [],          // [{name, url, integration_notes}]
  "starters": [],          // [{repo, url, language, summary}]
  "sdks_to_investigate": [],
  "strategic_notes": null,
  "recommended_integration_priority": [],
  "quick_wins": [],
  "unresolved": {
    "requires_human": [],
    "open_questions": []
  },
  "sources": [
    // {"url", "fetched_at": <real UTC NOW, never invented>,
    //  "type": "scrape" | "search_snippet",
    //  "used_for": "<field path or sponsor:NAME or starter:REPO>"}
  ]
}

Step 6 — Write outputs:
  write_file("hackathon/context.json", <the JSON, real values only>)
  write_file("hackathon/research_summary.md",
    <human-readable summary including: overview, sponsors, SDKs to use,
     Sources section listing every URL in sources[], Requires-human section
     if non-empty, and a "⚠️ DEGRADED RESEARCH" banner at top if Step 2
     was blocked>)

STOP HERE. Do NOT proceed to ideation, planning, or coding.

Hard rules (validation — these are non-negotiable)

sources[] must be non-empty. Every non-null hackathon field needs ≥1 matching sources[] entry whose used_for references it.
type="search_snippet" is allowed ONLY for these three fields: hackathon.name, hackathon.prizes (total pool), hackathon.submission_deadline. Anywhere else (sponsors, starters, sdks, judging_criteria, tracks) it is a hard violation — drop the entry rather than weaken its provenance.
type must be one of: scrape, search_snippet. Do NOT invent values like search, inferred, fetch.
fetched_at must be the actual current UTC timestamp at fetch time. Do NOT invent or backdate (e.g. 2025-06-17 when today is 2026-04).
Hackathon-specific fields (judging_criteria, tracks, prizes, submission_requirements) stay []/null unless a successfully scraped page literally states them. Never copy from search snippets, never infer from "what hackathons usually have", never carry over from prior runs.
starters[] entries: each url must be linked from a scraped hackathon page or a scraped sponsor doc page. Otherwise drop.
research_summary.md is REQUIRED. Phase will not be marked complete without it (enforced in state.py).

Output Files

hackathon/context.json — structured data + audit trail
hackathon/research_summary.md — human summary

Notes for maintainers

Sitemap-first design replaced the older search-driven discovery loop. Search engines can't index links inside CAPTCHA-walled SPAs, so the agent was unreliable at finding sponsor docs autonomously. Letting the user pass docs=... removes that whole class of failure.
Keyword filter is intentionally generic (/introduction, /quickstart, /api, etc.). If a hackathon has unusual SDK terminology, edit the default keyword string in Step 3a — do not push that complexity onto the spawn caller.
Cap of 15 URLs per doc-root prevents the agent from spidering an entire doc site. Tune here, not at the call site.

Hackathon Research Skill

Purpose

Input format (fixed — only these two forms)

research <hackathon_url>

research <hackathon_url> docs=<url1>,<url2>,<url3>

If the user uses form 2, the URLs after docs= are sponsor / SDK / framework documentation roots that the research agent MUST explore. Comma-separated, no spaces inside the list.

Available tools

firecrawl_scrape — primary content fetcher (handles JS, returns markdown).

web_fetch — fallback when Firecrawl is unavailable.

read_file / write_file.

Spawn Task Template

[HACKATHON RESEARCH AGENT] Goal: Produce a hackathon intelligence report grounded in URLs the user gave. Inputs you receive from the orchestrator (envelope payload): - user_command: full original user input (for reference) - phase: "research" - doc_roots: list of doc-site roots the user provided (may be empty/missing) - scrape_urls: pre-filtered concrete URLs already expanded from doc_roots via sitemap.xml + keyword filter (may be empty/missing) Do not ask clarifying questions. Proceed autonomously. Step 1 — Workspace context: read_file("AGENTS.md") read_file("SOUL.md") Step 2 — Hackathon page (best-effort): firecrawl_scrape(HACKATHON_URL, formats=["markdown","links"]) If the scrape returns < 2000 chars or a CAPTCHA/Cloudflare wall: Try once more with formats=["html","markdown"], wait_for=3000. If still blocked: record under unresolved.requires_human and proceed — do NOT search-engine-guess facts. The user's DOC_URLS will be the authoritative source instead. Step 3 — Scrape pre-expanded doc URLs: For EACH url in scrape_urls (the orchestrator already filtered these down from sitemap.xml — do NOT re-discover, do NOT skip any): firecrawl_scrape(url, formats=["markdown"]) Append a sources[] entry: {url, fetched_at, type="scrape", used_for}. Extract from the markdown: SDK names, integration patterns, code examples, prerequisites, auth/key requirements. If scrape_urls is empty AND doc_roots is non-empty, the sitemap fetch failed during orchestrator pre-expansion. In that case: For each root in doc_roots: firecrawl_scrape(root, formats=["markdown"]) Append to sources[] and proceed with whatever you got. If both scrape_urls and doc_roots are empty, the user only gave a hackathon URL (form 1). Skip this step. Step 4 — Discord / private channel: If the hackathon page mentions a Discord invite or "join channel for codes", record under unresolved.requires_human. Do NOT try to join. Step 5 — Synthesize context.json (NO hardcoded defaults — empty/null if not sourced from a real scrape): { "hackathon": { "name": null, "url": null, "host_platform": null, "submission_deadline": null, "demo_day": null, "format": null, "tracks": [], "judging_criteria": [], "submission_requirements": [], "prizes": [] }, "sponsors": [], // [{name, url, integration_notes}] "starters": [], // [{repo, url, language, summary}] "sdks_to_investigate": [], "strategic_notes": null, "recommended_integration_priority": [], "quick_wins": [], "unresolved": { "requires_human": [], "open_questions": [] }, "sources": [ // {"url", "fetched_at": <real UTC NOW, never invented>, // "type": "scrape" | "search_snippet", // "used_for": "<field path or sponsor:NAME or starter:REPO>"} ] } Step 6 — Write outputs: write_file("hackathon/context.json", <the JSON, real values only>) write_file("hackathon/research_summary.md", <human-readable summary including: overview, sponsors, SDKs to use, Sources section listing every URL in sources[], Requires-human section if non-empty, and a "⚠️ DEGRADED RESEARCH" banner at top if Step 2 was blocked>) STOP HERE. Do NOT proceed to ideation, planning, or coding.

Hard rules (validation — these are non-negotiable)

sources[] must be non-empty. Every non-null hackathon field needs ≥1 matching sources[] entry whose used_for references it.

type="search_snippet" is allowed ONLY for these three fields: hackathon.name, hackathon.prizes (total pool), hackathon.submission_deadline. Anywhere else (sponsors, starters, sdks, judging_criteria, tracks) it is a hard violation — drop the entry rather than weaken its provenance.

type must be one of: scrape, search_snippet. Do NOT invent values like search, inferred, fetch.

fetched_at must be the actual current UTC timestamp at fetch time. Do NOT invent or backdate (e.g. 2025-06-17 when today is 2026-04).

Hackathon-specific fields (judging_criteria, tracks, prizes, submission_requirements) stay []/null unless a successfully scraped page literally states them. Never copy from search snippets, never infer from "what hackathons usually have", never carry over from prior runs.

starters[] entries: each url must be linked from a scraped hackathon page or a scraped sponsor doc page. Otherwise drop.

research_summary.md is REQUIRED. Phase will not be marked complete without it (enforced in state.py).

Output Files

hackathon/context.json — structured data + audit trail

hackathon/research_summary.md — human summary

Notes for maintainers

Sitemap-first design replaced the older search-driven discovery loop. Search engines can't index links inside CAPTCHA-walled SPAs, so the agent was unreliable at finding sponsor docs autonomously. Letting the user pass docs=... removes that whole class of failure.

Keyword filter is intentionally generic (/introduction, /quickstart, /api, etc.). If a hackathon has unusual SDK terminology, edit the default keyword string in Step 3a — do not push that complexity onto the spawn caller.

Cap of 15 URLs per doc-root prevents the agent from spidering an entire doc site. Tune here, not at the call site.

hackathon-research