2026-03-156 min read

Build a Daily Intelligence Digest Agent with GitHub Actions

Set up an automated daily intelligence briefing agent using GitHub Actions and the Polaris API. Runs free, delivers to Slack every morning.

Every morning at 8am, this agent checks Polaris for the top stories across your chosen verticals, formats a digest, and sends it to Slack. Total setup time: 10 minutes. Cost: free.

What You'll Build

A GitHub Action that runs on a cron schedule, calls the Polaris API, and posts a formatted digest to your Slack channel.

Step 1

Create a GitHub Repository

Create a new repo (or use an existing one). Add two files:

.github/workflows/news-digest.yml

yaml

name: Daily News Digest
on:
  schedule:
    - cron: '0 13 * * *'  # 8am EST / 1pm UTC
  workflow_dispatch:  # manual trigger for testing

jobs:
  digest:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - uses: actions/setup-python@v5
        with:
          python-version: '3.11'
      - run: pip install polaris-news requests
      - run: python digest.py
        env:
          POLARIS_API_KEY: ${{ secrets.POLARIS_API_KEY }}
          SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL: ${{ secrets.SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL }}

digest.py

python

import os
import json
import requests
from polaris_news import PolarisClient

client = PolarisClient(api_key=os.environ["POLARIS_API_KEY"])
slack_url = os.environ["SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL"]

# Get top briefs from your chosen categories
categories = ["markets", "crypto", "defense", "tech"]
all_briefs = []

for cat in categories:
    feed = client.feed(category=cat, per_page=3)
    for brief in feed.briefs:
        if brief.confidence >= 0.75:
            all_briefs.append(brief)

# Sort by confidence
all_briefs.sort(key=lambda b: b.confidence, reverse=True)

# Format for Slack
blocks = [
    {
        "type": "header",
        "text": {"type": "plain_text", "text": "Morning Intelligence Briefing"}
    },
    {
        "type": "section",
        "text": {
            "type": "mrkdwn",
            "text": f"*{len(all_briefs)} high-confidence briefs "
                    f"across {len(categories)} verticals*"
        }
    },
    {"type": "divider"}
]

for brief in all_briefs[:10]:
    blocks.append({
        "type": "section",
        "text": {
            "type": "mrkdwn",
            "text": (
                f"*<https://thepolarisreport.com/brief/{brief.id}"
                f"|{brief.headline}>*\n"
                f"Confidence: {brief.confidence:.0%} · "
                f"Bias: {brief.bias_score} · "
                f"Sources: {brief.source_count} · "
                f"_{brief.category}_"
            )
        }
    })

# Send to Slack
requests.post(slack_url, json={"blocks": blocks})
print(f"Sent {len(all_briefs)} briefs to Slack")

Step 2

Add Secrets

In your GitHub repo: Settings → Secrets → Actions → New repository secret

POLARIS_API_KEY — Get one free at thepolarisreport.com/developers
SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL — Create at api.slack.com/messaging/webhooks

Step 3

Test It

Go to Actions → Daily News Digest → Run workflow. You should see a formatted briefing in your Slack channel within 30 seconds.

Customize It

Change categories

Edit the categories list. Choose from: markets, crypto, politics, defense, space, climate, cyber, biotech, energy, startups, real-estate, sports, science, health, policy, world, entertainment, tech.

Change confidence threshold

Raise 0.75 to 0.9 for only the highest-confidence briefs.

Change schedule

Edit the cron expression. 0 13 * * 1-5 runs weekdays only.

Add trending entities