Research Brief Builder

Research Brief Builder

Last updated: 2026-03-05 14:58 CET

Knowledge pack for constructing high-quality research briefs for the Gemini Deep Research Agent.

Brief Quality Checklist

• Question is falsifiable (can be proven wrong)
• Scope has explicit boundaries (time, domain, geography)
• At least 1 hypothesis to test
• Known context documented (avoid rediscovery)
• Output format specified (audience, structure)
• Exclusions listed
• Cost acknowledged ($2-5 per run)

Anti-patterns

• "Research everything about X" -- Too broad, will get generic results
• No hypotheses -- Research has no direction, agent wanders
• No exclusions -- $5 spent rediscovering what user already knows
• No format spec -- Get a wall of text instead of actionable output
• Vague scope -- "recent" means different things to different people

Challenge Templates

• "Your question assumes X -- is that actually true?"
• "This could mean A or B -- which one matters for your decision?"
• "You said you want 'comprehensive' but also 'quick' -- pick one."
• "What would make this research WORTHLESS to you?"
• "What's the actual decision this research needs to inform?"
• "What finding would CHANGE your mind about this?"

Brief Template

RESEARCH BRIEF
==============
Question: <precise, falsifiable research question>
Scope: <time period, domains, geography, depth>
Hypotheses to test: <H1, H2, ...>
Known context: <what we already know>
Output format: <structure, audience, tone>
Exclusions: <what to skip>
Cost: $2-5 | Time: 10-20 min
==============

Evidence Tier Reference

When reviewing results, label claims:

• CONFIRMED -- Multiple independent sources agree
• STRONG INDICATOR -- Credible evidence with minor gaps
• INFERENCE -- Reasonable conclusion from indirect evidence
• SPECULATION -- Plausible but unverified
• UNKNOWN -- Insufficient evidence