Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Academic Review Deck Builder agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The Academic Review Deck Builder is an agent skill, a packaged set of instructions that an AI agent loads when it recognises a matching request. This one tells the agent to build a literature review talk as one self-contained HTML file, styled like a LaTeX academic paper, with numbered figure captions, citation markers and keyboard-navigable slides. This guide explains what the skill does, how to install it, how to phrase a request so it triggers, and what to check before you present.
Academic Review Deck Buildernexu-io/open-design · Apache-2.0 Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Get the hps-academic-paper ZIP file from this skill's page on the site.
- 2Unzip into a skills folder. Place the folder in ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or in the project's .claude/skills/ folder for one project.
- 3Or upload in the Claude apps. In the Claude apps, go to Settings, then Capabilities, then Skills, and upload the skill.
- 4Make a request. Ask for a literature review talk on your topic, naming your audience and decision target.
- 5Answer the setup questions. The agent asks for source materials, deadline and must-keep numbers before it builds the deck.
- 6Open and verify the HTML. View the output file in a browser, then check every citation, number and caption against your sources.
What the skill makes the agent do
The skill teaches an AI agent to produce a research presentation as one web page. The output uses a white background, serif type, numbered figure and table captions, citation markers and a slide show you can drive with the keyboard. The visual style is locked, so the agent does not improvise colours or fonts.
The skill does not start from a blank page. It starts from the provided example.html file and replaces the example content with your own research material. Before it writes anything, it asks for the audience, the goal and your source materials. The example topic in the skill is compositional generalization in large language models.
- Output is a single HTML file with inline style and script, with no build step.
- Slides follow a fixed sequence: cover, outline, section dividers with content pages, conclusions, then references.
- The skill includes speaker notes and animations.
- The palette and fonts are fixed to a paper style, so it is not suited to brand or marketing decks.
Install the skill in Claude or a project
You can install the skill for yourself or for one project. Download the ZIP file from the skill's page on this site and unzip it. For a personal install, place the folder in ~/.claude/skills/. For a single project, place it in that project's .claude/skills/ folder.
If you use the Claude apps instead of files on disk, upload the skill under Settings, then Capabilities, then Skills.
- Personal install: unzip into ~/.claude/skills/
- Project install: unzip into the project's .claude/skills/ folder
- Claude apps: Settings, then Capabilities, then Skills, then upload
Check the requirements before you start
The skill needs an AI agent that supports SKILL.md skills and a web browser to open the finished HTML file. Google Fonts access is optional. The skill names Playfair Display, Noto Serif SC and JetBrains Mono, and it provides fallbacks if these cannot load.
The skill does not run scripts. It does use the network, so the page may reference Google Fonts when it is opened online.
- An agent that supports SKILL.md skills
- A web browser to view the HTML output
- Optional: Google Fonts access for the named fonts (fallbacks provided)
- No scripts are run by the skill; it uses the network
Trigger the skill with a natural request
The skill loads when your request matches its triggers. Its listed triggers include academic-review-deck, academic-research, research, grant, review, html deck and html slides. You can also ask in plain words about a literature review talk for your PI or lab group.
The agent will ask for missing essentials before it builds the deck: audience, decision target, source-of-truth materials, deadline and any numbers that must stay in the deck. Answer these first, then paste or point to your notes. The example prompt shipped with the skill looks like this:
- Name the audience, such as PI, lab group or reviewers
- State the decision the talk should support
- Provide your notes, papers or data as source material
- List the numbers that must appear unchanged
Create "Write an Academic Review Deck like a Top-Journal Survey Author" as a decision-grade Academic research deck in this template's own visual system. Audience: PI, lab group, reviewers.Review the output and check the claims
The skill ends with a critic pass against a rubric that asks whether the deck proves novelty without overclaiming. Treat that pass as a prompt for your own review, not a replacement for it. The agent writes the content, so it can overclaim novelty unless you check every source yourself.
Open the HTML file in a browser and step through the slides. Confirm each figure and table caption, each citation marker and each number against your original sources before you present.
- Verify every citation and number against the original paper
- Confirm novelty claims against the field literature
- Check that figure and table captions match the data shown
- Test keyboard navigation in the browser you will present from
Tips for better decks
Give the agent clean, specific notes rather than a long pile of files. The more precisely you state the audience and decision, the better the slide plan will fit.
If you need an editable PowerPoint file, this skill is the wrong tool, because its output is HTML. It also will not produce a brand-styled deck, since the palette and fonts are fixed.
- Keep the number of content pages per section small, two to four is the pattern the skill uses
- Ask for speaker-ready structure so each slide has a clear point
- Use the numbered captions as a checklist when you review
What people use it for
- A PI-facing literature review that maps a research field, the gap and open questions
- A lab group update that presents evidence in numbered figures and booktabs-style tables
- A student deck built from their own reading notes with a clean academic look
- A reviewer-facing summary of a proposed research direction
Frequently asked questions
Is the Academic Review Deck Builder skill free?
The skill is published under the Apache-2.0 licence, as listed on its page. Check the licence file in the download for the full terms before you reuse or redistribute it.
What do I need to run the hps-academic-paper skill?
You need an AI agent that supports SKILL.md skills and a web browser to view the HTML output. Google Fonts access is optional, because the skill provides fallbacks for its named fonts.
Where do I install an agent skill like this?
For personal use, unzip the skill into ~/.claude/skills/. For one project, unzip it into that project's .claude/skills/ folder. In the Claude apps, upload it under Settings, then Capabilities, then Skills.
Does the skill run scripts on my computer?
No, the skill does not run scripts. It does use the network, for example to load the optional Google Fonts.
Can I get an editable PowerPoint file from this skill?
No. The output is a single HTML file, so it is not suitable if you need an editable PowerPoint. Use a PowerPoint-focused tool for that.
How is this different from a general slide tool?
This skill locks a LaTeX-style paper theme with serif type, numbered captions and citation markers. A general slide tool gives you more brand and layout freedom, but it will not keep that academic style fixed for you.
New agent skills, repos and AI tools — every week
The best new skills and open-source projects, the fastest-growing repos, and one free prompt. Five minutes to read. Unsubscribe anytime.
Our verdict
Use this skill if you are a researcher, lab member or student preparing a literature review talk and want a clean, locked academic style built from your own notes. Pick a different tool if you need a brand or marketing look, an editable PowerPoint file, or a deck whose claims you cannot personally verify.
Download the skill