Lobstr

Tells you if a startup idea is worth building — in 60 seconds. Use when a user wants to evaluate, validate, or score a startup idea; asks "should I build this?"; needs a competitive landscape analysis; or is brainstorming and would benefit from structured VC-style feedback. Runs a competitor scan, scores the idea across 6 dimensions (Landscape, Opportunity, Business model, Sharpness, Timing, Reach), and checks EU investor signal from GRID. No API keys required, no setup — uses the free hosted API at runlobstr.com. Idea text is sent to runlobstr.com for scoring; see SECURITY.md for full data flow. Trigger on: /lobstr, startup idea, validate idea, should I build, competitive analysis, pitch score, idea evaluation, founder brainstorm.

LOBSTR — Startup Idea Scorer

Trigger

Explicit triggers:

• User types /lobstr "their startup idea"
• User types /validate, /scan, or /score followed by an idea

Proactive triggers (ask the user before running):

• User says "should I build this?" or "is this a good idea?"
• User is describing a startup concept they are considering
• User asks for a competitive analysis of a new product idea
• User is brainstorming business ideas and wants structured feedback
• User asks "what do you think of this idea?"
• User mentions a problem they want to solve and is considering a startup

When triggering proactively, say: "Want me to run a LOBSTR scan on that? It'll give you a competitor landscape, pitch score, and EU investor signal in about 60 seconds."

Workflow

Run scripts/lobstr.py with the idea as a single argument:

bash

python3 scripts/lobstr.py "their startup idea"

The script prints the formatted score card to stdout. Show it to the user verbatim — do not reformat or summarize.

If the script errors, surface the error message to the user clearly.

Flags

Flag	Effect
(none)	Private output only — score card to stdout
--public	Also publish to runlobstr.com and show share URL
--moltbook	Also post to m/lobstrscore on Moltbook
--json	Output raw JSON instead of formatted card (for agent-to-agent piping)

Default usage (no flags) makes one outbound call to runlobstr.com/api/score for scoring and returns privately. No data is published or shared.

Agent usage

When another agent calls this skill programmatically, use --json to get structured output:

bash

python3 scripts/lobstr.py "idea" --json

Returns a JSON object with overall_score, dimensions, competitors, grid, verdict, build_it.

What the user gets

• LOBSTR score (0–100) across 6 dimensions: Landscape, Opportunity, Business model, Sharpness, Timing, Reach
• Competitor list with real companies found via live web search
• GRID investor signal — how many EU VCs are active in the space
• Build/don't build verdict — honest, not flattering
• Shareable URL at runlobstr.com (only with --public)

Requirements

No API keys required. LOBSTR uses the free hosted API at runlobstr.com (5 scans/day).

For unlimited scans, set both keys to enable BYOK mode (local pipeline):

bash

export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=<your-key>
export EXA_API_KEY=<your-key>

Score Card Format (for reference)

text

🦞 LOBSTR SCAN
"idea here"

LOBSTR SCORE 74/100 [=======---]

L  Landscape   🟢  82/100  one line verdict
O  Opportunity 🟡  71/100  one line verdict
B  Biz model   🟡  65/100  one line verdict
S  Sharpness   🔴  61/100  one line verdict
T  Timing      🟢  88/100  one line verdict
R  Reach       🟢  79/100  one line verdict

VERDICT
Two sentence VC verdict here.

✅ BUILD IT.

Color rules: 🟢 ≥ 70, 🟡 50–69, 🔴 < 50