Skill library / Grok

News Briefing skill for Grok

Keeping up with the news that affects your work means wading through headlines, newsletters and social posts, most of which are irrelevant. This skill has Grok search for recent coverage on topics you name, sort what matters from noise, and return a one-page briefing with sources and dates you can check. It also separates confirmed facts from early reports and rumour.

Customise this skill free

What it's good for

Getting a five-minute briefing on your industry before a Monday team meeting
Checking the latest news on a client or competitor before a sales call
Summarising what changed this week in regulation, pricing or supply that affects a small business

How the skill works

Ask me for the topic, the time window (for example the last 24 hours or the last week), my sector or role, and the UK or international focus if I have not said. Ask no more than three questions.
Search for recent coverage from reputable news outlets, official bodies and company announcements. Use posts on X only as leads or to show reaction, never as the sole basis for a claim.
Select the five to seven developments most relevant to my work, and drop duplicates, opinion pieces presented as news, and anything older than my time window.
Write the briefing with a two-line summary at the top, then one short paragraph per item covering what happened, why it matters to me, and the source name and date. Label each item as confirmed, reported but unconfirmed, or disputed.
End with a short list of things to watch next and one or two questions I might want to follow up, then offer to go deeper on any item.

Built-in rules

Never state a claim without naming its source and date, and say so plainly if I cannot find a reliable source.
Mark anything unconfirmed, single-source or based on social media posts as such, and do not present it as established fact.
Keep the briefing to one page, stay neutral in tone, and do not give investment, legal or medical advice.

Example

You: “Give me a briefing on the UK hospitality sector for the last week. I run a small cafe in Leeds and I'm mainly worried about costs and staffing.”
Result: A one-page briefing with a two-line summary and six dated, sourced items on food prices, employer costs, wages and consumer spending, each labelled as confirmed or unconfirmed with a note on what it means for a small cafe.

SKILL.md template

Save as news-briefing/SKILL.md.

---
name: news-briefing
description: "Produces a short, sourced briefing on the news that matters to your business, sector or a named client. Use it when you need to catch up before a meeting, a Monday morning, or a call, without scrolling through headlines and social media."
---

# News Briefing

## Workflow
1. Ask me for the topic, the time window (for example the last 24 hours or the last week), my sector or role, and the UK or international focus if I have not said. Ask no more than three questions.
2. Search for recent coverage from reputable news outlets, official bodies and company announcements. Use posts on X only as leads or to show reaction, never as the sole basis for a claim.
3. Select the five to seven developments most relevant to my work, and drop duplicates, opinion pieces presented as news, and anything older than my time window.
4. Write the briefing with a two-line summary at the top, then one short paragraph per item covering what happened, why it matters to me, and the source name and date. Label each item as confirmed, reported but unconfirmed, or disputed.
5. End with a short list of things to watch next and one or two questions I might want to follow up, then offer to go deeper on any item.

## Rules
- Never state a claim without naming its source and date, and say so plainly if I cannot find a reliable source.
- Mark anything unconfirmed, single-source or based on social media posts as such, and do not present it as established fact.
- Keep the briefing to one page, stay neutral in tone, and do not give investment, legal or medical advice.

How to install in Grok

Copy the template above, then open Grok. Open Projects in the sidebar and create a new project called "News Briefing". Paste into the project's Instructions, then start your chats from inside that project.

Pro tip

Save these instructions in a Grok project so you only need to type the topic and time window each time, and add your sector and location to the project instructions so every briefing is tailored to you.

Want it tailored to how you work?

Answer a few quick questions and get a version that knows your situation. It appears on screen with a Copy button, and we email you a copy. Free, 5 a day.

Make my version

FAQ

How do I install the news briefing skill in Grok?

Is it free?

Yes. You can copy this template, or generate a customised version free (5 per day, no login).

Does it work on other platforms?

Yes. The template works as plain instructions in any AI. When you make your own version, we show the setup steps for whichever AI you use, with a Copy button.