resolve-before-asking

Exhausts brain lookup chains before escalating identity questions to the user.

29.4k|4.4k|Updated Apr 5, 2026
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/garrytan/gbrain --skill resolve-before-asking
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: resolve-before-asking
Source: https://github.com/garrytan/gbrain/tree/main/plugin/skills/resolve-before-asking
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/garrytan/gbrain --skill resolve-before-asking

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

What problem does it solve?

AI agents often ask users "who is X?" when the answer already exists in the knowledge base, wasting user attention on questions the system can answer itself. This Skill gates every identity, role, or relationship question behind a mandatory lookup chain so the user is only bothered as a last resort.

Core Features & Use Cases

  • Ordered Lookup Chain: Runs a six-step escalation — think/synthesize, search plus full page read, mounted source queries, timeline and graph traversal, web search, and only then user escalation — stopping at the first clear answer.
  • Hypothesis-Led Escalation: When asking is justified, the question leads with a best-guess hypothesis, states what was searched and found, and uses a 2-4 option choice gate instead of a bare "who is X?".
  • No-Placeholders-at-Ingest Rule: Post-ingestion passes scan newly created person and company pages for placeholder text like "[To be filled by content analysis]" and resolve relationship and role fields immediately via put_page.
  • Use Case: During a bulk email import that creates 100+ contact pages, run this Skill to fill each page's relationship field from email domains, meeting history, and timeline signals, so no briefing ever shows an "unknown relationship" entry.

Quick Start

Before asking me who a contact is, run the resolve-before-asking chain to check the brain's pages, timeline, and sources, and only escalate with a hypothesis if nothing resolves.

Frequently Asked Questions about resolve-before-asking

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema
How do I stop an AI agent from asking who a contact is?

Route identity questions through a lookup chain that checks the knowledge base first: cross-page synthesis, search plus full page reads, mounted source queries, and timeline or graph traversal. Only escalate to the user after all steps return nothing conclusive.

How to resolve unknown relationships after bulk email ingestion?

Run a post-ingestion pass over every created or updated page: scan for placeholder markers, run the lookup chain, extract relationship type and role, then update the page's frontmatter and context section. Batch pages in groups of 10-20 prioritized by activity volume.

What should an escalation question contain when the brain has no answer?

The escalation must state what was searched, what partial signals were found, and lead with a specific confirmable hypothesis rather than a bare question. Present it as a 2-4 option choice gate with confirm, correct, and skip options, then stop the turn.

Can email domains help identify unknown contacts?

Yes, the sender's domain seeds a hypothesis: a corporate domain already in the brain suggests an employee of that company, an unknown corporate domain suggests a new company, and personal domains require the full lookup chain. Treat domain hints as hypotheses, not proof.

When is it acceptable to ask the user about someone's identity?

Only after synthesis, search, page reads, mounted sources, timeline and graph traversal, and web search all return nothing conclusive, or when signals contradict each other. Even then, the question must open with the best-guess hypothesis and note any contradiction.