Real AI agent use cases, with sources and setup prompts

Query huge research archives with Claude Code

Paste a prompt into Claude Code that gives it read-only SQL and vector access to 600 GB of Hacker News, arXiv, LessWrong and more.

Free tier30 minIntermediateSource linked

Source

Xyra on Hacker News · 2025-12-31 · Project link

Written in our own words. Credit to the original author. Link checked 2026-10-14.

What they did

Paste a prompt into Claude Code that gives it read-only SQL and vector access to 600 GB of Hacker News, arXiv, LessWrong and more.

Result (as claimed)

Offered publicly as Scry.

Tools they used

Claude Code

Cost: Claude Code: free plan, paid from $17/mo. Checked 2026-10-14.

Set it up

  1. Gather your sources

    Collect the papers, notes, links or files you want to work from in one place.

  2. Load them into the tool

    Open Claude Code and add your sources. Keep the original files so you can check claims later.

  3. Ask focused questions

    Ask for summaries, comparisons or connections with citations to the source passages.

  4. Verify and save

    Spot check claims against the sources, then save the output as notes you can reuse.

Copy the full setup prompt

Paste into your agent and it will walk you through the setup, asking before anything that sends, posts or spends.

You are helping me set up this AI use case end to end in Claude Code.

Goal: Query huge research archives with Claude Code
What the original author did: Paste a prompt into Claude Code that gives it read-only SQL and vector access to 600 GB of Hacker News, arXiv, LessWrong and more.
Reported result (as claimed by the author): Offered publicly as Scry.
Source: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46442245
Tools they used: Claude Code
Category: Research & learning

Please:
1. Ask me 3 short questions about my situation (accounts I have, budget, what I want the output to look like).
2. Propose a step-by-step plan using these tools or cheaper alternatives, with the time and cost of each step. Use official pricing pages; say "check pricing" if unsure.
3. Then do the setup with me one step at a time, waiting for my OK before anything that sends messages, posts publicly, spends money or deletes data.
4. Finish with a checklist to run it again next time.

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