Deep Research Assistant with Mastra

This project implements an advanced AI deep research assistant using Mastra's workflows and agent capabilities. It creates an interactive, human-in-the-loop research system that allows users to explore topics, evaluate results, and generate comprehensive reports.

Implementation Approach

The research assistant is built on Mastra's workflows architecture for better orchestration and human interaction:

1. Workflow-Based Architecture:

   • mainWorkflow: Coordinates the entire research process
   • researchWorkflow: Handles the core research functionality with suspend/resume for user interaction
   • Human-in-the-loop experience with approval gates and iterative research

2. Research Agent with Custom Tools:

   • webSearchTool: Searches the web using the Exa API for relevant information
   • evaluateResultTool: Assesses result relevance to the research topic
   • extractLearningsTool: Identifies key learnings and generates follow-up questions

3. Report Generation:

   • reportAgent: Transforms research findings into comprehensive markdown reports
   • Returns report content directly after user approval of research quality

Key Benefits of Mastra vNext Implementation

1. True Human-in-the-Loop Research: Users can guide the research process, approve findings, and iterate when needed

2. Suspend/Resume Capabilities: The workflow can pause at strategic points to collect user input and feedback

3. Structured Workflow: Clear separation between research, approval, and report generation phases

4. Resilient Operation: Robust error handling and fallback mechanisms when web searches fail

5. Modular Design: Each component (workflows, agents, tools) can be maintained and upgraded independently

How to Use

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Run the research assistant
npm run dev

Follow the interactive prompts:

1. Enter your research topic
2. Review the research findings
3. Approve or reject the research results
4. If approved, a comprehensive report will be returned as output

Required Environment Variables

Create a .env file with:

OPENAI_API_KEY=""
EXA_API_KEY="your-exa-api-key"

Required Dependencies

• @mastra/core: Core Mastra functionality with vNext workflows
• @ai-sdk/openai: OpenAI models integration
• exa-js: Exa API client for web search
• zod: Schema definition and validation for workflows