# Monitor Hacker News for mentions of a keyword

**Use case:** 

Searches Hacker News stories and comments for a phrase, here AI agents, and with only-new switched on returns each match once across scheduled runs. Replace the phrase with your product, company or technology to get an alert feed of new mentions.

## Input

```json
{
  "mode": "search",
  "lists": [
    "top"
  ],
  "maxItemsPerList": 30,
  "query": "AI agents",
  "searchTypes": [
    "story",
    "comment"
  ],
  "sortBy": "date",
  "lastDays": 7,
  "storyIds": [
    "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8863"
  ],
  "includeStory": false,
  "maxCommentsPerStory": 1000,
  "hiringThreads": 1,
  "hiringRemoteOnly": false,
  "hiringVisaOnly": false,
  "onlyNew": true,
  "monitorKey": "ai-agents-mentions",
  "maxResults": 50
}
```

## Output

```json
{
  "rank": {
    "label": "Rank",
    "format": "number"
  },
  "title": {
    "label": "Title",
    "format": "text"
  },
  "points": {
    "label": "Points",
    "format": "number"
  },
  "commentCount": {
    "label": "Comments",
    "format": "number"
  },
  "author": {
    "label": "By",
    "format": "text"
  },
  "createdAt": {
    "label": "Posted",
    "format": "date"
  },
  "domain": {
    "label": "Site",
    "format": "text"
  },
  "storyType": {
    "label": "Kind",
    "format": "text"
  },
  "url": {
    "label": "Link",
    "format": "link"
  },
  "hnUrl": {
    "label": "On HN",
    "format": "link"
  }
}
```

## How it works

### 1. Sign up on Apify or log in

The Hacker News API: Stories, Comments, Search & Who's Hiring Jobs Actor is ready to run with the inputs already set for "Monitor Hacker News for mentions of a keyword". [Sign up or log in](https://console.apify.com/create-task-from-example/9hDCRWXvAaq5bZXX7) and you'll land in Apify Console with a copy of this exact task.

### 2. Start the "Monitor Hacker News for mentions of a keyword" task

The Hacker News API: Stories, Comments, Search & Who's Hiring Jobs Actor will start running based on the input automatically. You can also change all the input fields, like mode, lists, and more, to match your specific use case.

### 3. Receive the "Monitor Hacker News for mentions of a keyword" output

Monitor the progress in real time. You will be notified as soon as your dataset is complete and ready for review. Each result includes data such as rank, title, points, and more.

### 4. Integrate into your workflow

The final output is delivered in JSON, CSV, or Excel format, ready to be plugged into your workflow. You can also [run the "Monitor Hacker News for mentions of a keyword" task via API](https://apify.com/localwire/hacker-news.md).

## FAQ

### What does the "Monitor Hacker News for mentions of a keyword" task return?

The "Monitor Hacker News for mentions of a keyword" task returns one record per story: rank, title, points, comment count, author, time, domain, link and Hacker News link.

### How does the Hacker News keyword monitor avoid repeats?

With onlyNew on, the Hacker News keyword monitor remembers what earlier runs returned in a key-value store in your account and returns only items it has not returned before.

### How do I run the "Monitor Hacker News for mentions of a keyword" task on a schedule or from code?

Copy the "Monitor Hacker News for mentions of a keyword" task to your Apify account, then add a schedule in Apify Console or start it with the Run task API endpoint. Results download as JSON, CSV or Excel.

## About this Actor

This example demonstrates how to use [Hacker News API: Stories, Comments, Search & Who's Hiring Jobs](https://apify.com/localwire/hacker-news.md) with a specific input configuration. Visit the [Actor detail page](https://apify.com/localwire/hacker-news.md) to learn more, explore other use cases, and run it yourself.


## How to integrate an Actor?

This Task's input is already configured above. Use it as-is rather than inventing a new one.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For full API examples (JavaScript, Python, CLI, MCP, OpenAPI), see this Task's Actor page: https://apify.com/localwire/hacker-news.md

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).