---
name: hn-prospecting
description: Find high-intent leads on Hacker News via the free Algolia API — no API key needed. Score posts, surface Ask HN threads, and identify technical founders actively seeking tools.
version: 1.0.0
author: ModelFitAI <skills@modelfitai.com>
license: MIT
keywords: [openclaw, skill, hackernews, hn, lead-gen, prospecting, sales, founders]
requires: {}
---

# Hacker News Prospecting Skill

Find warm leads in Hacker News threads — technical founders and buyers actively seeking tools. Uses the **free Algolia HN Search API** — no API key, no credentials, no rate limits worth worrying about.

## How It Works

The HN Algolia API (`hn.algolia.com`) provides full-text search over all HN content — stories, Ask HN threads, and comments — completely free with no auth. This skill searches for buying-intent posts and scores them by lead quality.

## Commands

Run with Node.js: `node {baseDir}/hn-prospecting.js <command> [args]`

- **search `<keyword>`** — Find high-intent HN posts mentioning your keyword
- **ask** — Find recent "Ask HN" threads (best for tool discovery opportunities)
- **front** — Get current front page stories (trending technical discussions)
- **score** — Score an HN post for lead quality

## Usage

```bash
node {baseDir}/hn-prospecting.js search "looking for AI agent tool"
node {baseDir}/hn-prospecting.js search "alternative to Zapier"
node {baseDir}/hn-prospecting.js ask "lead generation"
node {baseDir}/hn-prospecting.js front
node {baseDir}/hn-prospecting.js score --title "Ask HN: What do you use for outreach?" --points 45 --comments 32
```

## Environment Variables

None required. The HN Algolia API is fully public.

## Why HN?

HN readers are disproportionately technical founders, early adopters, and decision-makers — the exact ICP for most B2B SaaS tools. "Ask HN: What tools do you use for X?" threads are goldmines for qualified lead discovery.


---
Source attribution: GeorgeDoors888
Original project: https://github.com/GeorgeDoors888/GB-Power-Market-JJ/blob/main/openclaw-skills/skills/3rdbrain/hn-prospecting/SKILL.md
License: MIT
License information: https://opensource.org/license/mit
Original upstream instructions; downloaded from Mega AI Hub.

## Upstream license notice

MIT License

Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights
to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell
copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is
furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:

The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all
copies or substantial portions of the Software.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE
AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER
LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM,
OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
SOFTWARE.



# Mega AI Hub resource metadata

Creator / publisher: GeorgeDoors888
Original project: https://github.com/GeorgeDoors888/GB-Power-Market-JJ/blob/main/openclaw-skills/skills/3rdbrain/hn-prospecting/SKILL.md
Attribution basis: Source repository record

Fields of work: Marketing, Sales
Roles: Business Development, Growth Marketer, Marketing Analyst, Sales Engineer, Sales Development Rep (SDR)
Specialties: API
Tools: Algolia
Country applicability: Country not specified
Classification basis: Source catalog labels
Instruction SHA-256: d2cde688d7215807b1840e14d4d124e45554fe42e73a7a0c82e4ed128bc55c8f