Last verified: October 12, 2026
Kimi Deep Research is Kimi’s autonomous research agent for long, source-backed research tasks. Instead of giving one short chatbot answer, it clarifies the task, searches across sources, reasons through the findings, and produces a structured research report with traceable citations and optional visual outputs.
Use it when you need a deeper report on a market, competitor, academic topic, regulation, investment question, policy issue, or complex decision. Do not treat it as a guaranteed replacement for a human researcher, lawyer, financial analyst, doctor, professor, or compliance expert. It can speed up research, but important claims and citations still need manual verification.
What is Kimi Deep Research?
Kimi Deep Research is an AI research agent powered by Kimi-Researcher, a model developed by Moonshot AI for complex research workflows. It is designed to do more than answer a question from memory: it can ask clarification questions, plan a research path, search sources, evaluate information, reason iteratively, and generate a long-form report.
The main benefit is workflow depth. A normal chat answer is useful for quick explanations. Kimi Deep Research is better when the question needs source discovery, comparison, synthesis, structured evidence, and a report that can be exported or refined.
Kimi Deep Research vs normal Kimi chat
The easiest way to choose the right mode is to ask whether you need a quick answer or a research process.
| Use case | Use normal Kimi chat | Use Kimi Deep Research |
|---|---|---|
| Simple factual question | Yes | No, unless source tracing is required |
| Quick summary | Yes | Only for complex or multi-source material |
| Market research | Limited | Yes |
| Competitor analysis | Limited | Yes |
| Academic literature review | Limited | Yes, with source verification |
| Investment or due diligence report | Limited | Yes, with human review |
| Legal or regulatory research | Only for general explanation | Useful for research, not legal advice |
| Long cited report | No | Yes |
For simple Q&A, normal chat is faster. For source-backed work that needs structure, citations, and a longer report, Deep Research is the better starting point.
How Kimi Deep Research works
Kimi describes Deep Research as a multi-stage workflow. The exact behavior depends on the topic, sources, and task complexity, but the process usually follows these stages:
| Stage | What happens | What you should do |
|---|---|---|
| Clarification | Kimi asks follow-up questions to confirm scope, assumptions, and direction. | Answer briefly and clearly. Add exclusions, geography, date range, and preferred source types. |
| Research planning | Kimi breaks the question into sub-questions and plans search directions. | Make sure the task is not too broad. Split very large topics into smaller research tasks. |
| Search and retrieval | Kimi searches sources and displays keywords, reasoning, and visited URLs during execution. | Let the task run. Do not stop it early unless the direction is clearly wrong. |
| Source evaluation | Kimi filters and compares information to reduce noise and redundancy. | Still verify the final sources yourself, especially for high-stakes claims. |
| Iterative reasoning | Kimi decides whether more retrieval is needed and adjusts the research path. | Use follow-up prompts after the report if a section needs more depth. |
| Report generation | Kimi creates a structured report with citations and, when relevant, visual outputs. | Review the report, check citations, then export or request a different format. |
How to use Kimi Deep Research step by step
- Open Kimi and select Deep Research mode.
- Enter a clear research question, not just a broad topic.
- Upload background materials if your task depends on your own files.
- Answer Kimi’s clarification questions instead of skipping them automatically.
- Define the time range, geography, source types, audience, and exclusions.
- Let Kimi run the research task. It may continue in the background while you leave the page.
- Review the finished report and check whether citations support the claims they are attached to.
- Ask follow-up questions for missing sections, deeper analysis, alternative viewpoints, or a different output format.
- Export the report if the format is supported for your output.
A strong Deep Research prompt should be specific enough to guide the search, but not so long that it confuses the research direction. Put the most important constraints near the beginning, then repeat critical constraints near the end for long prompts.
What Kimi Deep Research can create
Kimi’s official pages describe Deep Research as producing long, cited research reports and visual reports. Supported outputs include Markdown reports, PDFs, Word documents, PowerPoint decks, Excel spreadsheets, and interactive HTML reports.
| Output | Best for | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Markdown report | Detailed research, structured sections, citations, and easy editing | Claims, source dates, citation relevance, missing sections |
| Sharing a polished static report | Formatting, page breaks, chart labels, source links | |
| Word document | Editing the report after generation | Headings, references, tables, and tracked manual edits |
| PowerPoint deck | Turning research into a presentation | Slide accuracy, chart labels, layout, and speaker context |
| Excel spreadsheet | Research outputs that need tables, comparisons, or structured data | Formulas, calculations, row labels, and source mapping |
| Interactive HTML report | Visual exploration, shareable summaries, and interactive presentation | Public sharing settings, source links, and whether the HTML displays correctly |
Do not assume every task will need every format. Ask for the output that fits the next step: Markdown for editing, Word for document workflow, PDF for sharing, PowerPoint for presentation, Excel for structured data, and HTML for interactive viewing.
Best Kimi Deep Research use cases
Kimi Deep Research is strongest when the task requires multiple sources, comparison, synthesis, and a structured final answer.
| Use case | Good prompt direction | Human review needed |
|---|---|---|
| Market research | Ask for market size signals, segments, competitors, trends, risks, and opportunities. | Yes, especially for numbers and market estimates. |
| Competitor analysis | Ask for product strategy, pricing, positioning, features, audience, and weaknesses. | Yes, because competitor pages change quickly. |
| Academic research | Ask for literature themes, methods, agreements, conflicts, and gaps. | Yes, especially citations and methodology. |
| Investment due diligence | Ask for company background, funding, financial signals, risks, and comparable companies. | Yes. Do not treat output as financial advice. |
| Legal or regulatory research | Ask for relevant rules, official sources, dates, scope, and conflicting interpretations. | Yes. Use a qualified legal expert for decisions. |
| Policy interpretation | Ask for affected parties, timeline, practical impact, and source-backed explanation. | Yes, especially for jurisdiction-specific issues. |
| Consulting reports | Ask for an executive summary, findings, implications, risks, and recommendations. | Yes, especially client-specific assumptions. |
| Personal decisions | Ask for options, tradeoffs, buying criteria, risks, and recommendation logic. | Yes, especially prices, availability, and medical/financial issues. |
Kimi Deep Research prompt examples
Use prompts that define the research target, date range, source quality, geography, output format, and exclusions. These templates are designed to be adapted, not copied blindly.
| Task | Prompt template |
|---|---|
| Market research | Research the competitive landscape for [industry/product] in [region] from [date range]. Prioritize official reports, company filings, reputable industry reports, and recent news. Create a cited report with market segments, key players, growth drivers, risks, and a summary table. |
| Competitor analysis | Compare [Company A], [Company B], and [Company C] across product strategy, pricing, target audience, core features, positioning, recent updates, strengths, weaknesses, and likely next moves. Use primary sources where possible. |
| Academic review | Create a literature review on [topic]. Prioritize peer-reviewed papers, official datasets, and recent review articles. Group findings by methodology, identify agreements and conflicts, and list research gaps. Do not invent citations. |
| Investment due diligence | Run a research brief on [company/sector]. Cover business model, funding history, market context, competitors, regulatory risks, financial signals, and red flags. Use official filings, company sources, reputable financial news, and clearly mark uncertain claims. |
| Legal or regulatory research | Research the latest regulation about [topic] in [jurisdiction]. Prioritize official government and regulator sources. Summarize the rule, affected parties, timeline, compliance obligations, penalties, open questions, and source links. This is for research only, not legal advice. |
| Personal decision | Help me choose between [Option A], [Option B], and [Option C]. Research current facts, compare tradeoffs, identify hidden costs, and create a decision matrix. Exclude outdated sources and flag any claim that needs manual verification. |
| Board-ready report | Create a cited research report for senior leadership on [topic]. Include an executive summary, key findings, evidence table, charts where useful, strategic implications, risks, and recommended next steps. Output as a Word report and a PowerPoint deck if supported. |
How to get better citations and better sources
Deep Research reports are more useful when you tell Kimi what kinds of sources to prioritize. A vague prompt may produce a broad report, but a source-aware prompt produces a more usable research output.
- Set a date range, such as “from 2024 to 2026”.
- Set a geography, such as “United States only” or “EU market only”.
- Specify source types, such as official filings, government pages, academic papers, company documentation, or reputable industry reports.
- Tell Kimi what to exclude, such as forum posts, outdated blogs, sponsored content, or low-quality aggregators.
- Ask for a source table with source title, publisher, date, claim supported, and confidence level.
- Ask Kimi to separate verified facts from interpretation.
A citation is not a guarantee that the sentence is fully supported. For important claims, open the cited source, check the date, read the original wording, and confirm that the source supports the exact claim in the report.
Pricing, free access, and credits
Kimi says Deep Research is available on the free plan with a limited monthly allowance. For longer, more complex, or multi-turn research tasks, users may need additional credits or a paid plan.
Kimi does not frame Deep Research usage as a fixed query count. Usage is measured by token consumption and task complexity. Kimi’s credit documentation says membership features such as Agent, Deep Research, PPT, Docs, Sheets, Kimi Code, Kimi Work, and Kimi Claw share one credit pool, with credits deducted based on actual token consumption.
Kimi’s Help Center also gives a practical example: one Deep Research task may use about 5–10% of monthly credits based on the Moderato plan. Treat that as an example, not a universal price. Your actual usage can vary by prompt length, source retrieval, output length, model behavior, and follow-up work.
Limits and context length
The Deep Research FAQ states that Kimi-Researcher has a 128K-token context length, including both input and output. It also recommends keeping input within about 100K tokens and notes that output is usually much smaller than the full context window, often around 8K–16K tokens.
| Limit or behavior | What it means | Practical advice |
|---|---|---|
| 128K context length | The model can process a large combined input/output context in one run. | Do not assume it can output 128K tokens. Context is not the same as final report length. |
| Recommended input below 100K tokens | Very long source material can reduce quality or cause information loss. | Summarize very long materials first or split the research into chapters. |
| Output usually 8K–16K tokens | The final answer may be much shorter than the full context window. | Ask for chapter-by-chapter output or reply “continue” if a report stops early. |
| 10–25 minutes is common | Deep Research can take longer than normal chat because it searches and reasons. | Leave it running and check later instead of stopping too early. |
| Broad topics can go off track | A vague task gives the agent too many possible directions. | Add time range, geography, source type, and exclusions. |
Troubleshooting Kimi Deep Research
Many Deep Research problems come from broad prompts, long clarification replies, unstable browsing, or stopping the task too early. Use this table before restarting the task.
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Task looks stuck | Deep Research may still be running in the background. | Refresh the page, leave the conversation temporarily, and return later. Avoid clicking Stop unless necessary. |
| No result yet | The task may still be searching, verifying, or writing. | Wait longer, especially for complex topics. Check your network if the page looks abnormal. |
| Research goes in the wrong direction | The original scope or clarification response may have been too broad or unclear. | Use the feedback button and describe the issue. For the next run, narrow time range, geography, source types, and exclusions. |
| Credits deducted after stopping | Kimi reserves compute resources after the task starts. | Do not stop a task just because it appears slow. Refresh and check later first. |
| Report is incomplete | The output may have reached the single-response limit. | Reply with “continue” or ask Kimi to finish the remaining sections. For complex reports, request one chapter at a time. |
| Cannot download report | You may be using the wrong save path for the report type. | Use Download or Copy for text reports. For visual reports, use Preview, Share, Copy link, or save the HTML/PDF from the browser. |
Kimi Deep Research vs other Kimi features
Kimi has several adjacent features. Choosing the right one prevents slow, expensive, or badly scoped tasks.
| Feature | Use it for | Do not use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Kimi Deep Research | Long cited research reports, market analysis, literature review, due diligence, policy research | Simple questions that normal chat can answer faster |
| Normal Kimi chat | Fast answers, brainstorming, explanation, short summaries | Large research reports that require many sources and citations |
| Kimi Search | Fast source-assisted answers or web-supported lookup | Complex multi-stage research synthesis |
| Kimi Agent Mode | Task execution that may involve tools, files, browsing, or broader deliverables | Pure research if Deep Research mode is more focused |
| Kimi Docs | Word/PDF document creation, review, translation, and formatting | Initial open-ended research discovery |
| Kimi Sheets | Spreadsheet work, formulas, tables, and structured data outputs | Long narrative research reports unless paired with Deep Research |
| Kimi Slides | Presentation generation from a known topic or report | Source discovery before the research is complete |
| Kimi API docs | Developer integration, model IDs, API keys, and programmatic calls | Using the consumer Deep Research workflow manually |
Kimi Deep Research vs ChatGPT Deep Research, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and NotebookLM
Do not compare AI research tools only by brand name. Compare the workflow: source coverage, citation traceability, report length, export formats, file support, background execution, follow-up refinement, pricing, and how easy it is to verify claims.
Kimi’s main strengths are its agent-style research workflow, clarification step, traceable citations, visual report option, and multi-format outputs. Tools such as ChatGPT Deep Research, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and NotebookLM may be better for different workflows depending on your account, source needs, document set, region, and current product limits. Check each tool’s official documentation and pricing before making a final comparison.
When not to use Kimi Deep Research
Kimi Deep Research is not the right tool for every task. Avoid using it as the final authority in high-stakes situations.
- Do not use it for emergency decisions.
- Do not use it as a replacement for legal, medical, financial, investment, or compliance advice.
- Do not use it when you need guaranteed exhaustive search across proprietary databases that Kimi has not verified as available.
- Do not use it when you cannot verify the sources behind the output.
- Do not use it for simple questions that normal Kimi chat can answer faster.
- Do not use it for creative writing, entertainment predictions, fixed-format forms, or resume-writing tasks when the official documentation says Deep Research is not suitable for those categories.
Source-verification checklist
Before you publish, submit, invest, advise, or make a high-stakes decision based on a Deep Research report, verify the report manually.
- Open the cited sources, not just the report.
- Check whether the source is official, primary, academic, reputable, or low-quality.
- Check the publication date and whether the information is still current.
- Confirm that the cited source supports the exact claim in the sentence.
- Look for missing counterarguments or newer sources.
- Verify numbers, prices, laws, policy deadlines, medical claims, and financial assumptions independently.
- For legal, financial, medical, academic, or compliance work, ask a qualified expert to review the final output.
Sources checked
This article was checked against official Kimi and Moonshot sources: the Kimi Deep Research product page, the Kimi Deep Research Help Center overview, the Deep Research use cases and prompt library, the Deep Research FAQ, the Agent credits and billing page, the membership credit update rules, and the Kimi-Researcher technical report.
FAQ
What is Kimi Deep Research?
Kimi Deep Research is Kimi’s autonomous research agent for long, source-backed research tasks. It clarifies the task, searches sources, reasons through findings, and produces a structured report with traceable citations and optional visual outputs.
Is Kimi Deep Research free?
Kimi says Deep Research is available on the free plan with a limited monthly allowance. More complex, longer, or multi-turn research tasks may require additional credits or a paid plan.
Does Kimi Deep Research use credits?
Yes. Deep Research uses Kimi’s shared membership credit pool. Usage is based on actual token consumption, task complexity, output length, and tool use rather than a fixed query count.
What sources does Kimi Deep Research search?
Kimi states that Deep Research can search the open web and professional databases, including sources such as news, government sources, academic publications, corporate databases, and real-time financial or economic data. You should still specify preferred source types in the prompt and verify important citations manually.
Can Kimi Deep Research create PDFs or Word reports?
Yes. Kimi’s documentation says Deep Research reports can be exported as PDF or Word, and the product page also describes outputs such as PowerPoint decks, Excel spreadsheets, Markdown reports, and interactive HTML reports.
What is the context length of Kimi Deep Research?
Kimi’s FAQ states that Kimi-Researcher has a 128K-token context length, including input and output. It recommends keeping input within about 100K tokens, while generated output is usually much shorter, often around 8K–16K tokens.
Why did my Kimi Deep Research task get stuck?
A task may appear stuck while it is still searching, verifying, or writing in the background. Refresh the page, leave the conversation temporarily, and return later before stopping the task manually.
Can Kimi Deep Research replace a human researcher?
No. Kimi Deep Research can accelerate research and organize sources, but it should not replace expert review for legal, medical, financial, academic, investment, or compliance decisions.
How is Kimi Deep Research different from Kimi Agent Mode?
Kimi Deep Research is focused on research planning, source retrieval, synthesis, citations, and report output. Kimi Agent Mode is broader and can be used for many task-execution workflows beyond research.