Field

How we pick sources for the system

Notes on what makes a source worth integrating and what makes it noise.

2025-10-14 , by Mateo Reis , 2 min read

Member-relevance first.

The first question on any new source is whether it affects an actual member. We don't add sources because they exist. We add them because a client is exposed to what's in them and we currently can't see it.

Update cadence and structure.

A source needs to update on a knowable schedule and in a structured format we can parse. A blog without RSS is a worse source than a regulator's PDF on a known cadence, even if the blog is more interesting.

Signal-to-noise.

We watch the candidate source for two to four weeks before integrating. If it generates more noise than signal in that window, we don't integrate. The bar is high.