# Capabilities overview

MAIA's capabilities fall into four layers: agents that do the work, data they can read, context they remember, and the workspace where the work lives. This page lists every capability, what it takes, and what it returns.

Updated: 2026-09-30. Source: https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/overview

## Which capability for which need

| If you need | Use | Not |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Every parcel in a county that meets a set of conditions | Core data, through the main agent | Web research, which spends more credits and is never used for facts the data holds |
| A fact no dataset holds, for every row | An enrichment. Each row spends credits | A question in chat, which answers once |
| A fact you can see from above | Computer vision | Web research |
| Who to call | Contacts | A search on the owner's name |
| What is owed on a property | Mortgages and liens, where it is turned on | Web research |
| Your own records on the map | File upload, or Database sync for a live source | Retyping them into chat |
| A county or city layer MAIA does not hold | Data discovery, during a run | File upload, unless you already have the file |
| The same method run in the next county | Skills | Writing the objective again |
| How far a drive, walk, or bike ride is | Core data, through the main agent. Ask for a radius and MAIA measures straight-line distance instead | Nothing else in MAIA |
| A finished report or a chart | Another tool. MAIA produces maps, tables, and spreadsheets | Nothing in MAIA |

## Agents

Who does the work. See [Agents](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/agents).

| Capability | Takes | Returns |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Main agent](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/main-agent) | A research objective | Layers on the map and in the table, and a written answer |
| [Sub-agents](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/sub-agents) | One row and one question | A typed value, its reasoning, and its sources |

## Data

What the agents can read. See [Data](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/data).

| Capability | Takes | Returns |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Core data](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/core-data) | A query | Parcels, buildings, places, and the records around them |
| [Database sync](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/database-sync) | Tables from your own database. Enterprise only | Tables matched to parcels and kept in sync |
| [File upload](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/file-upload) | A spreadsheet or a map file | A layer or a table |
| [Data discovery](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/data-discovery) | A question the core data cannot answer | A public GIS layer, clipped to the county, with its usage terms |

## Context

What the agents remember. See [Context](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/context).

| Capability | Takes | Returns |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Skills](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/skills) | A method that worked | A run you can repeat in any county |
| [Knowledge](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/knowledge) | What you tell MAIA about your work, and what it learns at signup | Context on every turn |

## Workspace

Where the work lives. See [Workspace](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/workspace).

| Capability | Takes | Returns |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Shared workspaces](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/shared-workspaces) | A team | Shared projects, skills, and knowledge |
| [Sharing and publishing](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/capabilities/sharing-and-publishing) | A project, or one layer | A link anyone can open, or a CSV or Excel file |

## Enrichments

The agents build map layers from data, and they fill columns by research. A researched column is an enrichment, and each of its rows spends credits. The kinds are on [Enrichments](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/enrichments/overview).

| Enrichment | Takes | Returns |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Computer vision](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/enrichments/computer-vision) | A parcel, a building, or a point, seen from above | A value read from imagery |
| [Contacts](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/enrichments/contacts) | An owner or a company | The people behind it, with evidence |
| [Mortgages and liens](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/enrichments/mortgages-and-liens) | A parcel. Turned on per workspace | Its loans, liens, and foreclosure filings |
| [Property details](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/enrichments/property-details) | A parcel, a building, or a place | Owner occupancy and tenants |
| [Web research](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/enrichments/web-research) | A question | A sourced answer from the public web |

Every number is in [Limits](https://maia-analytics.com/docs/reference/limits).