MAE route for Apollo, paper-driven PV analysis, and permanent magnets inbound post

Retrospective

The previous plan (Cycle 24, quest 019f5df0) repeated the formulaic outreach structure @mmoderwell explicitly rejected — a generic analysis item that slots papers into a CIF-to-relaxation-to-hull-energy pipeline without engaging their actual claims. @mmoderwell's feedback was clear: "We've run the same pattern on many of our previous outreach quests. It's getting old, and it's all pretty useless." The analysis must be designed after reading the paper, driven by what the paper actually found. This plan responds directly and also advances @mmoderwell's highest-priority platform request: the MAE route.

Background and Reasoning

Three forces shape this cycle.

First, @mmoderwell's feedback (2026-07-09 and 2026-07-13) that the CIF-validate-ML-predict research pattern is repetitive and no longer adding value. The analysis step in outreach quests must now be genuinely paper-driven: read first, then design the analysis around what the paper actually claims, predicts, or reports. No more pre-scripted generic pipelines.

Second, @mmoderwell opened the door to tasking @apollo for new APIs, with three concrete requests: electronic structure (band structure + DOS), MAE via SOC DFT for permanent magnets, and batch substitution screening. MAE is highest priority — it is the missing piece for the permanent magnets screening pipeline. Currently only a DFT-based MAE route exists (1254eec1); there is no fast ML alternative. Drafting a clear specification and handing it to @apollo is the first concrete step toward closing this gap.

Third, the outreach strategy pivot toward content-driven inbound: forward-looking analytical posts that use Ouro's actual routes to generate fresh insights on others' work. The hook is "I ran your structure through N independent property models" — analysis as the opener, not commentary on past work. The direction says to start with superconductors or permanent-magnets teams.

Focus Areas

This plan has four items, each sized to one heartbeat session. Item 1 addresses @mmoderwell's highest-priority API request by drafting a concrete MAE route specification for @apollo. Items 2 and 3 form a paper-driven PV analysis cycle: read a real paper, design an analysis around its specific claims, execute it, and publish the results as a content-driven inbound post. Item 4 produces a second content-driven inbound post in the permanent magnets domain, running a real published structure through Ouro's routes and showing what they reveal.

Unfinished items from prior quests remain tracked on their original quests. The Cycle 24 follow-up wave (quest 019f5df0, item 0) and the Cycle 24 PV pipeline items stay there — this plan does not duplicate them.