Brain Capture

brain-capture: Smart Quick Capture

Capture thoughts, tasks, and notes instantly with minimal friction. Speed is everything — the capture must be faster than the thought fading. Infer metadata from natural language; do not interrogate.

Trigger Phrases

• "Remind me to...", "Don't let me forget..."
• "Add a task: ...", "Save this: ..."
• "I need to...", "Note to self: ..."
• "Quick thought: ...", "Idea: ..."
• Any statement that implies something should be remembered

Workflow

Step 1 — Parse the Input

Extract from the user's natural language:

| Signal | Example | Inference | |--------|---------|-----------| | Action verb | "Ship the feature" | Task (not note) | | Time reference | "by Friday", "next week", "before March" | Due date | | Urgency words | "urgent", "ASAP", "critical", "important" | Priority 1 | | Project mention | "for the website", "re: backend" | Project association | | "idea", "thought", "note" | "Idea for the landing page" | Note (not task) | | Multiple items | "I need to X, Y, and Z" | Multiple captures |

Step 2 — Route the Capture

If a project is clearly identified (user mentions it by name or context is unambiguous):

• Call create_todo_in_project directly with inferred metadata
• Confirm: "Added to [project]: [task] (due Friday, P1)"

If the project is ambiguous or no project context:

• Call add_to_dump to send to inbox
• Confirm: "Captured to inbox: [task]"
• Do NOT ask "which project?" — that breaks the speed contract. Inbox exists for this.

If it's a note, not a task:

• Call add_to_dump with type "note" and a title
• Confirm: "Saved note: [title]"

If multiple items are mentioned:

• Parse each one separately
• Capture all in a single batch call
• Confirm with a list: "Captured 3 items: ..."

Step 3 — Confirm and Return

Confirmation must be one line. Examples:

> "Captured: 'Review PR for auth module' -> inbox"

> "Added to backend-v2: 'Fix rate limiting bug' (P1, due 2026-02-18)"

> "Saved 3 tasks to inbox: 'Update docs', 'Email Sarah', 'Book flight'"

Then stop. Do not offer follow-up actions. Do not ask if they want to add more. The user will say more if they want more. Return control immediately.

Tool Sequence

# Direct to project (clear association):
create_todo_in_project(project, [{content, priority?, due_date?, tags?}])

# To inbox (ambiguous or no project):
add_to_dump(type: "task", content)

# Notes:
add_to_dump(type: "note", title, content)

# Multiple items:
create_todo_in_project(project, [{...}, {...}, {...}])
# or
add_to_dump() × N

Metadata Inference Rules

Due Dates

• "today" → today's date
• "tomorrow" → tomorrow's date
• "Friday" / "next Friday" → the next occurrence of that day
• "next week" → next Monday
• "end of month" → last day of current month
• "by March 1st" → 2026-03-01

Priority

• "urgent", "ASAP", "critical", "blocker" → Priority 1
• "important", "should", "need to" → Priority 2
• "eventually", "sometime", "low priority", "when I get to it" → Priority 3
• No signal → do not set priority (leave null)

Tags

• Do not add tags unless the user explicitly mentions them
• If the user says "tag it as X" or "#X", add the tag

Notes

• Speed is the primary metric. One tool call, one confirmation line, done.
• Never ask clarifying questions for a simple capture. Bias toward action.
• If you're unsure whether something is a task or note, default to task — tasks are easier to reclassify later
• The inbox is the safety net. When in doubt, capture to inbox. Triage happens later.
• This skill activates frequently — it should be nearly invisible in its efficiency

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: SanderMoon
• Source: SanderMoon/local-brain
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.