Company News Tracker

Company News Tracker - Professional Portfolio Intelligence Agent

Overview

The Company News Tracker is an advanced AI agent designed to monitor and synthesize news coverage for portfolio companies, providing investment professionals with timely, verified market intelligence. This intelligent system automatically performs targeted web research, aggregates news from multiple sources, and delivers investor-grade summaries directly via email and Slack—enabling portfolio managers to stay informed on company developments without manual research effort.

Core Capabilities

Bulk Portfolio Tracking

1. Comprehensive Monitoring: Tracks all portfolio companies simultaneously for news and developments
2. Multi-Source Research: Performs varied web searches for funding announcements, product launches, hiring updates, customer wins, and partnerships
3. Recency Prioritization: Focuses on news from the last 7 days with significant items from last 30 days included
4. Source Verification: Only includes news from official sources, reputable tech outlets (TechCrunch, VentureBeat, Forbes), LinkedIn announcements, and SEC filings
5. Organized Summaries: Presents findings organized by company with impact analysis

Ad-hoc Company Research

1. On-Demand Analysis: Research any company outside the primary portfolio
2. Consistent Methodology: Applies same research depth and verification standards
3. Clear Labeling: Distinguishes ad-hoc research from primary portfolio tracking

Multi-Channel Delivery

1. Email Integration: Formats professional summaries for email delivery via Gmail API
2. Slack Integration: Posts channel-optimized messages with emoji highlights to Slack
3. Timestamp Tracking: Includes research timestamps for all deliverables
4. Source Attribution: Every claim includes direct URLs for verification

Key Integrations

1. Gmail API: OAuth2-authenticated email delivery for formatted portfolio updates
2. Slack Messaging: SlackAuth-authenticated channel posting for team notifications
3. Web Search: Comprehensive news discovery across multiple sources
4. Knowledge Base: Portfolio company list management and context integration

Primary Use Cases

1. Portfolio Monitoring: Track company developments, funding rounds, and executive changes automatically
2. Investor Due Diligence: Monitor news coverage of portfolio companies and investment targets
3. Competitive Intelligence: Track competitor announcements and market activities
4. Deal Sourcing: Identify acquisition targets and merger announcements
5. Risk Management: Early detection of company challenges or regulatory issues
6. Executive Briefings: Automated summaries for leadership team decision-making
7. Market Research: Track industry trends and technology adoption patterns
8. Reputation Monitoring: Monitor media coverage and public perception of holdings

Advanced Features

Decision-Making Process

1. Portfolio Updates: "Check the portfolio" triggers bulk tracking of all companies
2. Specific Research: "Research [Company]" enables ad-hoc company analysis
3. Email Delivery: "Send portfolio update to email" formats and delivers via Gmail
4. Slack Delivery: "Post portfolio update to Slack" posts to configured channel
5. Clarification: Ambiguous requests trigger clarification prompts

Handling Edge Cases

1. No Recent News: Transparently reports when no updates found in 30-day window
2. Conflicting Information: Notes conflicts and cites all sources
3. Sensitive Information: Flags potentially confidential discoveries
4. Missing Context: Requests portfolio updates if list is unavailable

Verification & Quality Standards

1. Source Requirements: Official company pages, reputable news outlets, LinkedIn, SEC filings only
2. Avoids: Rumors, unconfirmed reports, confidential leaks, private financial data
3. Recency Targeting: Last 30 days primary focus; last 60 days for significant items
4. URL Verification: Every claim includes direct link for independent verification

Target Audience

1. Investment firms and venture capital partners
2. Corporate business development teams
3. Portfolio managers and investment professionals
4. Executive leadership and C-suite
5. Competitive intelligence departments
6. Strategic planning teams
7. Financial advisory firms

Technical Specifications

1. LLM: Anthropic Claude Haiku 4.5 for efficient, fast processing
2. Context Capacity: 50,000 tokens for comprehensive news synthesis
3. Message History: 200 message limit with 5 most recent preserved
4. Response Speed: 300ms timeout for real-time delivery
5. Summary Model: Claude 3.5 Sonnet for high-quality synthesis (threshold: 0.7)
6. Smart Context: Enabled for intelligent information prioritization
7. Max Tokens: 20,000 per response with 6 conversation turns

Value Proposition

Transforms time-consuming manual news research into a streamlined, automated intelligence gathering process. Enables investment professionals to stay informed about portfolio companies, market developments, and competitive activities in real-time while maintaining source verification and data accuracy. Reduces research team workload, improves decision speed, and provides investor-grade summaries ready for stakeholder distribution.

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SETUP & CONFIGURATION INSTRUCTIONS

Required Context Variables

The Company News Tracker agent requires three context variables to be configured before use:

1. FROM_EMAIL - The email address from which portfolio updates will be sent
2. TO_EMAIL - The email address where portfolio updates will be delivered
3. SLACK_CHANNEL - The Slack channel ID where portfolio updates will be posted

Step-by-Step Configuration Guide

Step 1: Access the Agent Instructions

1. Click on the agent name ("Company News Tracker") at the top of the chat window
2. Click on the "Instructions" tab

Step 2: Navigate to Context Variables

1. In the instructions panel, locate the "Context Variables" tab
2. Click on the "Context Variables" tab to expand it
3. You will see three empty input fields:

- FROM_EMAIL - TO_EMAIL - SLACK_CHANNEL

Step 3: Configure FROM_EMAIL

1. Click in the FROM_EMAIL field
2. Enter the email address from which you want portfolio updates to be sent
3. Example: portfolio-tracker@company.com
4. This should be a Gmail account with OAuth2 authentication configured
5. Verify the email address is correctly spelled

Step 4: Configure TO_EMAIL

1. Click in the TO_EMAIL field
2. Enter the email address where you want to receive portfolio updates
3. Example: investor@company.com or team@company.com
4. You can enter a single email address or multiple addresses (comma-separated if supported)
5. Verify the email address is correctly spelled

Step 5: Configure SLACK_CHANNEL

1. Click in the SLACK_CHANNEL field
2. Enter the Slack channel ID where you want portfolio updates posted
3. How to find your Slack Channel ID:

- Open Slack and navigate to the desired channel - Click on the channel name at the top - Scroll down to find the "Channel ID" field - Copy the channel ID (format: C0XXXXXXXXXX)

1. Example: C0A1B2C3D4E5F
2. Paste the channel ID into the SLACK_CHANNEL field

Step 6: Save Configuration

1. After entering all three context variables, look for the "Save" button
2. The Save button is typically located at the bottom of the Context Variables panel
3. Click the "Save" button to persist your configuration
4. You should see a confirmation message: "Configuration saved successfully"
5. The context variables are now active and the agent can use them for email and Slack delivery

Step 7: Verify Configuration (Optional)

1. Return to the chat window
2. Test the agent with a command like: "Post portfolio update to Slack"
3. Verify that the message appears in your configured Slack channel
4. Test email delivery with: "Send portfolio update to email"
5. Check that the email arrives at your configured TO_EMAIL address

Important Notes

1. OAuth Authentication Required: Both Gmail and Slack integrations require OAuth2 authentication. Ensure your accounts have authorized the Company News Tracker agent.
2. Email Account: The FROM_EMAIL must be a Gmail account with OAuth2 configured for the agent
3. Slack Workspace Access: The SLACK_CHANNEL must be a channel in a Slack workspace where you have permissions
4. Save After Changes: Always click "Save" after updating any context variable
5. Empty Values: If any context variable is left empty, the agent will prompt you to provide it when attempting to use that feature
6. Testing Recommended: Test each delivery method (email and Slack) after configuration to ensure proper setup

Troubleshooting Context Variables

Issue: "Email delivery failed"

1. Solution: Verify FROM_EMAIL is a Gmail account and OAuth2 authentication is active
2. Solution: Check that TO_EMAIL is spelled correctly
3. Solution: Ensure the Gmail account has authorized the agent in account settings

Issue: "Slack message not posted"

1. Solution: Verify SLACK_CHANNEL ID is correct (format: C0XXXXXXXXXX)
2. Solution: Confirm the Slack workspace has authorized the agent
3. Solution: Check that the bot has permission to post in the specified channel
4. Solution: Ensure the channel is not archived

Issue: "Context variables not saving"

1. Solution: Click the "Save" button after entering values
2. Solution: Check browser console for error messages
3. Solution: Refresh the page and try again
4. Solution: Verify you have edit permissions for the agent

Editing Context Variables Later

To update context variables at any time:

1. Click on the agent name at the top of the chat window
2. Click "Instructions"
3. Click the "Context Variables" tab
4. Modify any of the three fields as needed
5. Click "Save" to apply changes
6. Changes take effect immediately for subsequent agent invocations

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