Screens the Deal. Doesn't Decide It.
The video explains that Claude's deal-screening skill does not weigh a deal like a partner would. It follows the fixed steps in a SKILL.md: extract key metrics, run a pass/fail framework against the fund's criteria, and produce a one-page screening memo.
Ask Claude to screen a deal and it is tempting to picture it weighing the opportunity the way a partner would, deciding whether the fund should pursue it. This short video explains that this is not what happens with Anthropic's deal-screening skill. It screens the materials against your criteria and leaves the decision where it was, with you.
A skill is a folder Claude reads first
A skill is a folder Claude reads before it works. For deal-screening, the SKILL.md inside holds the full instruction set in plain language, with no hidden logic. Claude reads the file and then acts on it. The video's shorthand is that the file is the program.
One step at a time
The instructions live in a Steps section. Claude reads each step in order and runs it. The flow is linear, one step after another, unless a step itself says to branch. Nothing else sits behind the steps making separate judgments.
What the skill actually does
The job is specific. The skill extracts the deal's key metrics from inbound CIMs, teasers and broker materials. It runs those metrics through a pass/fail framework against the fund's investment criteria. Then it outputs a one-page screening memo, the same way on every run.
The boundary follows from that. What is not in the SKILL.md's steps is not part of the job. The skill does not decide whether you should do the deal. It runs the file's fixed pass/fail checks against your criteria and hands you a memo.
Why the distinction matters
Knowing this limit helps set expectations. The memo is a consistent, repeatable screen, which is useful for quickly sorting incoming deal flow. It is not a recommendation, and it does not make the call on whether the fund should proceed. That judgment remains a human one.
Key takeaways
- deal-screening is a skill, which is a folder Claude reads before it works.
- Its SKILL.md is a plain-language instruction set with no hidden logic.
- Claude runs the steps in order, linearly, unless a step says to branch.
- It extracts key metrics from CIMs, teasers and broker materials.
- It applies a pass/fail framework against the fund's investment criteria.
- The output is a one-page screening memo, produced the same way every run.
- It screens the deal but does not decide whether the fund should do it.
Try it yourself
Paste this into Claude: "I want to quickly screen inbound deal flow, meaning CIMs, teasers and broker materials, against my fund's investment criteria. Read the deal-screening skill and walk me through what you will do before you do it." The last clause matters. Asking Claude to explain first surfaces the actual steps it is about to run, before it runs them.
Chapters
Full transcript(auto-generated, with timestamps)
The naive framing: "does it decide this deal?"
[0:00]Someone assumed deal screening would decide whether the fund should do this deal. It doesn't. It screens the materials against your criteria. Does deal screening screen this deal for me? A skill is a folder Claude reads before
A skill is a folder
[0:11]It works. This one is deal screening, its skill. MD holds the full instruction set in plain language, no hidden logic. Claude reads the file then acts on it. The file is the program. The instructions live in a step section.
One step at a time
[0:25]Claude reads each step in order and runs it linear, one after another, unless a step itself says to branch. Deal screening's job is specific. Extract the
Screens, every time
[0:33]Deal's key metrics, run them through a pass/fail framework against the fund's investment criteria, and output a one-page screening memo. What isn't in the skill? MD's steps isn't part of the job. Deal screening doesn't decide if you should do the deal. It runs the skill. MD's pass/fail checks against your
Carry-out
[0:51]Criteria and hands you a memo the same way every time. Your turn. Here's the prompt. Read it with me. Paste this into Claude. I want to quickly screen inbound deal flow, sim teasers, and broker
Your turn
[1:02]Materials against my fund's investment criteria. Read the deal screening skill and walk me through what you will do before you do it. That last clause matters. Asking Claude to explain first surfaces the actual steps it's about to run. Screens the deal, doesn't decide it. Lay 'em in for bear.
