Design & Validate Startup Strategy

Runs the full startup validation process from raw idea to investor-ready strategy in one session. It covers 8 sequential phases: intake, brainstorm, market research (4 waves), customer interviews, strategy, brand, product definition, financial projections, and validation planning. Pre-flight checks surface disqualifying signals early. Research gates and interview gates stop progress if data argues against proceeding, so you get an honest go/no-go verdict instead of cheerleading.

1. Start with your idea or describe what you need validated. 2. The skill runs pre-flight checks, conducts 4-wave market research (parallel agents in Claude Code, sequential in Claude.ai), interviews customers if you haven't already, and synthesizes findings into strategic frameworks. 3. Produces Lean Canvas, value proposition canvas, positioning doc, financial projections (Stage A assumption-based or Stage B evidence-based), brand definition, product MVP spec, and a 30-day action plan. 4. You get 30+ structured deliverables and a scorecard verdict (proceed, conditional, concerns, or stop). Output: validated strategy with research evidence and clear next steps.

Heavy token consumption due to 4 parallel research waves and synthesis reasoning. Claude Max 5x recommended. Requires web search for real data; falls back to knowledge-based mode if unavailable. Customer interviews require calendar time outside the session (1-2 weeks typical). Session state preserved in PROGRESS.md for resuming from any checkpoint.