Custom Competitive Intelligence Platform, Built in 14 Weeks
Full-Spectrum Market Intelligence Platform Built for BWN in 14 Weeks
Client
Harbinger
Headquarters
United Kingdom
Timeline
14 weeks
Technology
AI AGENTS
Reactive to proactive competitive awareness
6
intelligence dimensions in one platform
14 weeks
from kickoff to production
Weekly AI-synthesized briefings delivered automatically
The challenge
Skilled analysts spending much of their time on data gathering, monitoring hundreds of sources manually with no unified view
The solution
Autonomous intelligence engine monitoring 6 data dimensions (patents, products, news, personnel, filings, custom signals) with AI-powered analysis and multi-channel delivery
The results
- Reactive to proactive competitive awareness
- 6 intelligence dimensions in one platform
- 14 weeks from kickoff to production
- Weekly AI-synthesized briefings delivered automatically
A Custom Competitive Intelligence Platform, Shipped in 14 Weeks
We shipped BWN a custom competitive intelligence platform in 14 weeks. BWN operates in a competitive market where a single missed signal (a competitor's patent filing, a key executive departure, a new product launch) can mean the difference between leading the market and reacting to it. Their intelligence team was drowning: hundreds of sources to monitor manually, no unified view, delayed awareness, analyst burnout, and no institutional memory when team members left.
Harbinger AI is EdgeFirm's answer: a full-spectrum market intelligence platform that continuously monitors, detects, analyses, and alerts on competitive signals across the entire business market. Named after the bearer of news, Harbinger AI is deliberately proactive: it hunts for signals, understands their significance, and delivers them ranked by impact, before you even know to look.
7 capabilities carried the build
Design and build a market intelligence platform capable of autonomously monitoring, detecting, and delivering competitive signals from six distinct data dimensions. The system needed to remove analyst busywork and replace scattered spreadsheets and email threads with a single, AI-native intelligence layer that any team member could query through natural language.
01
Multi-source collection engine across patents, product pages, news, workforce signals, company filings, and custom signal types
02
AI-powered signal detection with CRITICAL/HIGH/MEDIUM/LOW classification and intelligent noise filtering
03
Multi-channel alert delivery
Microsoft Teams rich cards, email, in-app feed
04
Conversational AI assistant with access to full intelligence database and 10+ specialized capabilities
05
Automated weekly intelligence briefings with AI-synthesized narrative analysis (PDF + Teams/Email delivery)
06
Admin dashboard with real-time analytics, company management, and cost tracking
07
Feedback loop for continuous model refinement (thumbs up/down with reasons)
The stack behind it
OpenAI, LangChain, FastAPI, Next.js, PostgreSQL, Teams/Email integration
OpenAI
LangChain
PostgreSQL
Microsoft TeamsAI Layer
OpenAI gpt-4o for signal analysis and conversational intelligence. LangChain for multi-step reasoning pipelines
Data Collection
Custom crawlers and integrations for patents, product pages, news APIs, LinkedIn signals, and company filings
Backend
FastAPI services with PostgreSQL for structured intelligence storage and query
Frontend
Next.js (Node.js) admin dashboard with real-time analytics, company management, and reporting
Alert Delivery
Microsoft Teams Bot Framework for rich formatted cards. SMTP for email delivery. WebSocket for in-app alerts
Reporting
Automated PDF generation for weekly briefings. Multi-dimensional filtering and Excel export
Our development process
Multi-Source Intelligence Collection
Six distinct data dimensions monitored autonomously: Patent Monitoring with AI-powered analysis, Product Intelligence tracking competitor page changes and pricing, Company & Workforce Signals detecting executive movements and headcount shifts, News & Media Intelligence with intelligent deduplication, Organizational Changes including M&A and partnership announcements, and fully configurable Custom Signal Types expandable without code changes.
AI-Powered Signal Detection & Analysis
Every signal passes through a two-layer AI pipeline. The first layer classifies changes and events by business significance (CRITICAL to LOW) with detailed reasoning. A secondary filtering layer enforces daily alert quotas to prevent analyst fatigue, scores relevance against BWN's defined business context, and logs rejections for continuous refinement. Admins update their business context directly in the platform, no developer involvement.
“Working with EdgeFirm was unlike any vendor relationship we've had. Every week we saw the product live, understood what was coming next, and had a direct line to their founders. Harbinger AI gave us a genuine competitive advantage. We now detect market shifts in real time that used to take us weeks to piece together.”
What changed after launch
Reactive to Proactive
BWN now detects competitive signals as they happen, including patent filings, product changes, and executive departures. Before, these surfaced weeks later, after competitors had already moved.
Scattered to Unified
Patents, product intelligence, news, personnel changes, all in one platform, searchable through natural language. Six data dimensions replaced by a single query.
Individual Knowledge to Institutional Intelligence
When analysts leave, their knowledge stays. Every signal, article, and patent ever tracked is part of the collective intelligence any analyst can query.
Information Overload to Signal Clarity
AI filtering surfaces what matters. Daily alert quotas prevent fatigue. Noise stays buried. Analysts spend their time on strategy, not monitoring.
14 Weeks to Production
Weekly live demos, clear communication, no surprises. BWN saw the product in motion every step of the way, from kickoff to full production deployment.
Before Harbinger AI, BWN's competitive intelligence was manual, fragmented, and always one step behind. After Harbinger AI: an autonomous intelligence engine monitoring six data dimensions across their entire competitive market, detecting and analysing signals with AI, delivering prioritized alerts in real time, and giving every analyst the power to query the organization's collective intelligence through natural conversation. BWN chose to continue with a monthly retainer. The system compounds in value with every signal tracked.
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