Overview

/ma-create is a production command in the M&A Operations category of the Prismatic Platform that initiates new Mergers and Acquisitions deals by creating deal records, executing initial target profiling, and triggering the first round of intelligence collection. This command is the entry point for all M&A activity within the platform -- every deal in the pipeline begins with a /ma-create invocation that establishes the target profile, sets deal parameters, and activates the intelligence collection machinery.

This command operates under the L4 authority level and is executed by the ma-deal-commander agent. It is part of the platform's 216-command slash command registry, built on the AIAD (Autonomous Intelligence Agent Design) standard. The L4 authority level is the highest operational authority in the platform, reflecting the strategic significance and resource commitment involved in initiating M&A deal pipelines. Only operators with supreme authority clearance can create new deals, ensuring that the platform's intelligence and analysis resources are deployed only for properly authorized acquisition activities.

Deal creation in the Prismatic Platform is not a passive record-keeping exercise. When a deal is created, the ma-deal-commander agent immediately initiates a cascade of preparatory operations: automated OSINT intelligence collection on the target through /investigate, key personnel identification through /email-osint, digital infrastructure assessment through /ghost-recon, and public record searches through /google-hacking. This proactive intelligence gathering ensures that by the time the first analyst reviews the deal, a substantial intelligence foundation has already been assembled.

Architecture

The deal creation system operates as a multi-phase initialization pipeline that establishes the deal context and triggers downstream intelligence collection.

Deal Creation Pipeline

/ma-create -> Input Validation -> Target Profiler -> Deal Registry -> Intel Trigger
                   |                    |                 |               |
                   v                    v                 v               v
             Parameter Check      Company Lookup     Deal Record     /investigate
             Target Validation    Industry Class     Status: NEW     /email-osint
             Duplicate Check      Size Estimation    Assigned Agent  /ghost-recon
                                  Geography Map      Timeline Set    /google-hacking

Deal Lifecycle States

State	Description	Transitions
NEW	Deal created, initial profiling in progress	PROFILING
PROFILING	Intel collection and target analysis active	SCREENING
SCREENING	Initial viability assessment	ACTIVE, REJECTED
ACTIVE	Full due diligence underway	NEGOTIATION, ON_HOLD, TERMINATED
NEGOTIATION	Deal terms under negotiation	CLOSING, TERMINATED
ON_HOLD	Temporarily paused	ACTIVE, TERMINATED
CLOSING	Final closing procedures	COMPLETED, TERMINATED
COMPLETED	Deal successfully closed	(terminal)
REJECTED	Failed screening criteria	(terminal)
TERMINATED	Deal abandoned or failed	(terminal)

Deal Record Structure

Field	Type	Description
deal_id	string	Unique identifier (DEAL-YYYY-NNN format)
target_name	string	Target company or entity name
target_domain	string	Primary web domain
target_type	enum	Company, division, asset_bundle, IP_portfolio
industry	string	Primary industry classification
geography	string	Primary operating geography
estimated_size	range	Estimated deal size range
strategic_rationale	text	Why this target is being pursued
deal_team	list	Assigned analysts and agents
created_at	datetime	Deal creation timestamp
state	enum	Current lifecycle state
confidence	float	Overall deal confidence score

Usage

# Create a new deal with basic information
/ma-create "Acme Corporation" --domain=acme.com --type=company

# Create deal with full context
/ma-create "Target Tech Inc" --domain=targettech.io --type=company \
  --industry="Enterprise SaaS" --geography="US" \
  --size="50M-100M" --rationale="Cloud infrastructure expansion"

# Create deal for a division acquisition
/ma-create "Acme Cloud Division" --parent="Acme Corporation" \
  --type=division --domain=cloud.acme.com

# Create deal for IP portfolio
/ma-create "Patent Portfolio X" --type=ip_portfolio \
  --holder="Research Corp" --patents=47

# Create deal with automatic OSINT
/ma-create "Target Corp" --domain=target.com --auto-intel --intel-depth=full

# Create deal with custom team assignment
/ma-create "Target Corp" --domain=target.com \
  --team="analyst-1,analyst-2" --lead="ma-deal-commander"

# Create deal with timeline
/ma-create "Target Corp" --domain=target.com \
  --screening-deadline="2026-03-15" --target-close="2026-09-30"

# Dry run to preview deal creation
/ma-create "Target Corp" --domain=target.com --dry-run

# Create deal from template
/ma-create --template=saas-acquisition --target="Target Corp" --domain=target.com

Options

Option	Type	Default	Description
`target_name`	string	required	Target entity name (positional argument)
`--domain`	string	none	Primary web domain of target
`--type`	string	company	Target type: company, division, asset_bundle, ip_portfolio
`--industry`	string	auto-detect	Industry classification
`--geography`	string	auto-detect	Primary operating geography
`--size`	string	none	Estimated deal size range (e.g., "50M-100M")
`--rationale`	string	none	Strategic rationale for the acquisition
`--parent`	string	none	Parent company for division acquisitions
`--patents`	integer	none	Number of patents for IP portfolio deals
`--auto-intel`	flag	true	Automatically trigger intelligence collection
`--intel-depth`	string	standard	Intelligence depth: quick, standard, full
`--team`	string	auto	Comma-separated team member identifiers
`--lead`	string	ma-deal-commander	Deal lead agent or analyst
`--screening-deadline`	string	+30d	Screening phase deadline
`--target-close`	string	none	Target closing date
`--template`	string	none	Deal template: saas-acquisition, asset-purchase, ip-acquisition
`--priority`	string	normal	Deal priority: low, normal, high, critical
`--dry-run`	flag	false	Preview deal creation without executing
`--format`	string	text	Output format: text, json, markdown

Execution Flow

Input Validation: All required parameters are validated. The target name is checked for uniqueness against existing deals to prevent duplicate entries. The domain, if provided, is validated as a resolvable hostname.
Duplicate Detection: The system searches existing active deals for potential duplicates based on target name similarity, domain match, and parent company overlap. If a potential duplicate is found, the operator is warned and must confirm or cancel.
Target Profiling: Automated target profiling begins immediately. If a domain is provided, WHOIS data, DNS records, and public web content are retrieved. Industry classification and geography detection are performed automatically if not explicitly specified.
Company Lookup: Public databases are queried for company information including incorporation details, registered agents, officers, financial filings (SEC, Companies House, etc.), and corporate structure. Results vary by geography and company type.
Deal Record Creation: A deal record is created in the M&A pipeline with a unique deal identifier in DEAL-YYYY-NNN format. The deal is initialized in the NEW state with all provided parameters and auto-detected information.
Team Assignment: The deal team is assembled. The ma-deal-commander agent is assigned as the primary coordinator. Additional specialist agents (financial, legal, operational, strategic, technical) are assigned based on deal complexity and type.
Intelligence Triggering: If --auto-intel is enabled (default), the system automatically dispatches intelligence collection requests through /investigate for the target entity, /email-osint for key personnel, and /ghost-recon for digital infrastructure. These operations run asynchronously and results feed into the deal record as they complete.
Timeline Initialization: Deal milestones are established based on provided deadlines or default timelines. The screening phase, due diligence windows, and target close date are set. Automated reminders and escalation triggers are configured through /ma-enforce.
Notification: Relevant stakeholders are notified of the new deal creation. The deal appears in the /ma-dashboard pipeline view immediately.

Integration Points

Component	Relationship	Details
Prismatic Agents	Executed by `ma-deal-commander`	L4 authority deal initiation
/ma-analyze	Downstream analysis	Consumes deal context for analysis
/ma-report	Report generation	Creates reports from deal data
/ma-dashboard	Pipeline visibility	New deals appear in dashboard
/ma-status	Status tracking	Deal progress monitoring
/ma-enforce	Compliance	Deadline and milestone enforcement
/investigate	OSINT intelligence	Automatic target investigation
/email-osint	Personnel intel	Key personnel identification
/ghost-recon	Infrastructure intel	Digital infrastructure assessment
/google-hacking	Search intel	Public information discovery
Quality Gates	Validation	Deal record completeness checks
Telemetry	Metrics	Deal creation tracking

Best Practices

Provide domain when available. The domain is the single most valuable piece of targeting information for the intelligence collection system. WHOIS, DNS, certificate transparency, and web content analysis all key off the domain, and its presence dramatically increases the quality and speed of initial profiling.

Set realistic timelines. Deal timelines drive enforcement actions through /ma-enforce. Overly aggressive timelines generate unnecessary escalation noise, while overly generous timelines reduce pipeline velocity. Calibrate based on deal complexity and team capacity.

Use templates for common deal types. Templates (SaaS acquisition, asset purchase, IP acquisition) pre-configure analysis scopes, team assignments, and timeline defaults appropriate to each deal type, reducing setup time and ensuring consistent coverage.

Enable auto-intel for all deals. The automatic intelligence collection provides a substantial head start on due diligence with minimal cost. Even for quick screening exercises, the OSINT data provides valuable context that improves screening accuracy.

Review duplicate warnings carefully. False positives in duplicate detection are common when targets have similar names or overlapping domains. However, true duplicates waste significant resources, so always investigate duplicate warnings before confirming.

Document strategic rationale upfront. The --rationale parameter captures the initial strategic thesis for the acquisition. This rationale serves as the reference point against which all subsequent analysis findings are evaluated during the deal lifecycle.

Error Handling

Error	Cause	Resolution
`target_name_required`	No target name provided	Provide target name as positional argument
`duplicate_detected`	Similar deal already exists in pipeline	Review existing deal, confirm or cancel
`domain_unresolvable`	Provided domain does not resolve	Verify domain spelling or omit if unavailable
`authority_insufficient`	Operator lacks L4 authority	Request authority elevation or delegate to authorized operator
`intel_dispatch_failed`	Intelligence collection could not be triggered	Check intelligence system health, retry manually
`template_not_found`	Specified deal template does not exist	List available templates or create deal without template
`invalid_size_format`	Deal size range in wrong format	Use format "NNM-NNM" (e.g., "50M-100M")
`team_member_not_found`	Specified team member does not exist	Verify team member identifiers

Advanced Usage

Batch Deal Creation

Create multiple deals from a screening list.

# Create deals from CSV screening list
/ma-create --batch=targets.csv --auto-intel --intel-depth=quick --format=json

# Template-based batch creation
/ma-create --batch=saas-targets.csv --template=saas-acquisition --priority=high

Deal Cloning

Clone an existing deal configuration for related targets.

# Clone deal parameters to new target
/ma-create "Similar Corp" --clone-from=DEAL-2026-001 --domain=similarcorp.com

# Clone with overrides
/ma-create "New Target" --clone-from=DEAL-2026-001 --size="100M-200M" --priority=critical

Programmatic Deal Creation

Create deals through the platform API for automated screening workflows.

# API-driven deal creation
curl -X POST /api/v1/ma/create \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"target_name": "Target Corp", "domain": "target.com", "type": "company"}'

Custom Intelligence Profiles

Configure deal-specific intelligence collection parameters.

# Create deal with custom intel focus
/ma-create "Target Corp" --domain=target.com \
  --intel-focus="financial,legal,technical" \
  --intel-sources="sec-filings,patent-databases,github"

Doctrine Compliance

All commands operate under the NO MERCY, NO DOUBTS doctrine:

NO MERCY: Zero tolerance for incomplete execution or quality violations. Deal creation either completes fully -- record created, team assigned, intelligence triggered -- or fails atomically with no partial state left in the pipeline.
NO DOUBTS: Full investigation before action, evidence-based results. Automatic intelligence collection begins immediately, ensuring that no deal proceeds to screening without an evidence base. Duplicate detection prevents resource waste on already-tracked targets.

/ma-analyze - Comprehensive M&A analysis including financial, legal and operational review
/ma-report - Generate detailed M&A analysis report with visualizations
/ma-dashboard - M&A deal pipeline dashboard with real-time status tracking
/ma-status - M&A deal pipeline status overview and progress tracking
/ma-enforce - M&A enforcement actions for deal compliance and deadline tracking
/investigate - Launch comprehensive OSINT investigation across 121+ sources
/email-osint - Email-based OSINT gathering with breach correlation and social profiling
/google-hacking - Google dorking and advanced search intelligence extraction

Connect & Contribute

Created by Tomáš Korcak (korczis) | Open Source under GHL

GitHub | GitLab | LinkedIn | Contact
Developer Portal | Architecture | Meet the Creator

/ma-create