DEV Community: firstdata

How to Fact-Check Your AI Agent's Answers Using Authoritative Data Sources

firstdata — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 11:08:50 +0000

Your AI agent just told a user that Brazil's GDP growth was 4.2% last year. Is that right? How would you even check?

This is the hallucination problem — and it's not going away. LLMs generate plausible-sounding answers, but they don't actually know facts. They pattern-match from training data that might be outdated, biased, or just plain wrong.

The Real Cost of Wrong Answers

A McKinsey survey found that 65% of organizations using generative AI reported at least one accuracy incident in production. In finance, healthcare, and policy — wrong numbers aren't just embarrassing, they're dangerous.

The fix isn't better prompting. It's grounding your AI in authoritative data sources.

What Makes a Data Source "Authoritative"?

Not all data is created equal. Here's the hierarchy:

Level	Source Type	Example	Trust Score
🏛️ Government	National statistics offices	US Census Bureau, China NBS	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌐 International	UN/World Bank/IMF	World Bank Open Data	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🔬 Research	Universities, think tanks	Our World in Data	⭐⭐⭐⭐
📊 Market	Industry bodies	Bloomberg, S&P	⭐⭐⭐
🏢 Commercial	Paid data vendors	Statista	⭐⭐

Building a Fact-Checking Pipeline

Here's a practical architecture:

User Query → AI Agent → Generate Answer
                ↓
         Extract Claims
                ↓
    Match to Authoritative Sources
                ↓
      Verify Against Real Data
                ↓
         Return with Citations

Step 1: Identify Verifiable Claims

Not every AI output needs fact-checking. Focus on:

Numerical claims (statistics, percentages, rankings)
Temporal claims ("as of 2024", "last quarter")
Geographic claims ("in the EU", "across ASEAN")

Step 2: Map Claims to Data Sources

This is where most teams get stuck. You need a knowledge base of data sources — knowing which organization publishes what data, in what format, with what API.

For example:

GDP data → World Bank, IMF, national statistics offices
Trade data → UN Comtrade, WTO
Health data → WHO, national health ministries
Climate data → IPCC, NOAA, national weather services

Step 3: Query the Source

Many authoritative sources now offer APIs:

# Example: Query World Bank API for GDP data
import requests

url = "https://api.worldbank.org/v2/country/BRA/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG"
params = {"format": "json", "date": "2023"}
response = requests.get(url, params=params)
data = response.json()

actual_gdp_growth = data[1][0]["value"]  # Get the real number

Step 4: Compare and Cite

ai_claim = 4.2  # What the AI said
actual = actual_gdp_growth  # What the data says

if abs(ai_claim - actual) > 0.5:
    return f"⚠️ Correction: Brazil's GDP growth was actually {actual}% (Source: World Bank)"
else:
    return f"✅ Verified: {actual}% (Source: World Bank)"

The Missing Piece: A Data Source Directory

The hardest part of fact-checking isn't the code — it's knowing where to look.

That's why we built FirstData, an open-source knowledge base of 270+ authoritative data sources. It catalogs:

🏛️ 60+ government statistical offices
🌐 40+ international organizations (UN, World Bank, WHO, IMF)
🔬 30+ research institutions
Complete with API endpoints, data domains, and access guides

It even has an MCP (Model Context Protocol) integration, so your AI agent can look up the right data source in real-time:

User: "What's the unemployment rate in Germany?"

Agent → MCP Query: search_source("germany unemployment")
     → Returns: germany-destatis (Federal Statistical Office)
     → Agent queries Destatis API
     → Returns verified answer with citation

Try It Yourself

Browse the catalog: github.com/MLT-OSS/FirstData
Use the MCP endpoint: https://firstdata.deepminer.com.cn/mcp
Star the repo if this is useful ⭐

Building trustworthy AI isn't about making models smarter — it's about connecting them to ground truth.

5 Free Data APIs Every AI Developer Should Bookmark in 2026

firstdata — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 02:58:51 +0000

Building AI agents that need real-world data? Here are 5 authoritative, free APIs you should know about — plus a bonus tool that helps you discover them all.

1. 🌍 World Bank Open Data API

What: GDP, population, poverty, education indicators for 200+ countries
API: https://api.worldbank.org/v2/
Format: JSON/XML
Rate limit: None (public)

# Get China GDP (current USD)
curl "https://api.worldbank.org/v2/country/CN/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?format=json&date=2020:2024"

Perfect for: economic analysis, country comparisons, development research.

2. 📊 IMF Data API

What: World Economic Outlook, Balance of Payments, financial statistics
API: https://dataservices.imf.org/REST/SDMX_JSON.svc/
Format: JSON (SDMX)
Rate limit: Reasonable

# Get available datasets
curl "https://dataservices.imf.org/REST/SDMX_JSON.svc/Dataflow"

Perfect for: macroeconomic forecasting, financial modeling, policy analysis.

3. 🏥 WHO Global Health Observatory API

What: Health indicators, disease statistics, mortality data for 190+ countries
API: https://ghoapi.azureedge.net/api/
Format: JSON (OData)
Rate limit: None

# List all indicators
curl "https://ghoapi.azureedge.net/api/Indicator"

Perfect for: health research, epidemic tracking, public health AI agents.

4. 🌡️ Open-Meteo Weather API

What: Weather forecasts, historical weather, climate data globally
API: https://api.open-meteo.com/v1/forecast
Format: JSON
Rate limit: 10,000 requests/day (free tier)

# Get Beijing 7-day forecast
curl "https://api.open-meteo.com/v1/forecast?latitude=39.9&longitude=116.4&daily=temperature_2m_max"

Perfect for: weather-aware agents, agriculture, logistics optimization.

5. 📈 FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data) API

What: 800,000+ US & international economic time series
API: https://api.stlouisfed.org/fred/
Format: JSON/XML
Rate limit: 120 requests/minute

# Get US unemployment rate (need free API key)
curl "https://api.stlouisfed.org/fred/series/observations?series_id=UNRATE&api_key=YOUR_KEY&file_type=json"

Perfect for: financial analysis, economic indicators, market research.

🎁 Bonus: Find All of These (and 155 More) with One MCP Tool

Remembering all these APIs is hard. What if your AI agent could search a curated directory of 160+ authoritative data sources?

FirstData is an open-source knowledge base that catalogs verified data sources from governments, international organizations, and research institutions — with MCP integration.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "firstdata": {
      "url": "https://firstdata.deepminer.com.cn/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Your AI agent can then:

Search by domain: "find health data APIs in Asia"
Filter by authority: government, international org, research institution
Get detailed metadata: update frequency, API docs, access instructions

⭐ Star on GitHub — MIT licensed, community contributions welcome!

What free data APIs are you using in your AI projects? Share in the comments!

Why Your AI Agent Needs a Trusted Data Directory (And How MCP Makes It Easy)

firstdata — Sat, 07 Mar 2026 04:00:18 +0000

The Hallucination Problem Nobody Talks About

We all know LLMs hallucinate. But here's a subtler problem: even when your AI agent tries to cite sources, it often points to the wrong ones.

Ask Claude or GPT for "China's GDP growth rate" and you might get:

A reasonable-sounding number
A vague citation like "World Bank" or "IMF"
But no actual URL to verify it

The AI isn't lying — it genuinely doesn't know where to find authoritative data. It was trained on web text, not on a structured catalog of primary sources.

The Solution: A Data Source Knowledge Base

What if your AI agent had access to a curated directory of verified, authoritative data sources?

That's exactly what FirstData provides:

🏛️ 160+ curated sources — governments, international organizations, research institutions
🌍 50+ domains — economics, health, environment, education, trade
📊 Structured metadata — every source includes website URL, API endpoint, update frequency, authority level
🔌 MCP integration — plug it into any MCP-compatible AI client

How MCP Makes This Work

Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard that lets AI applications connect to external tools and data sources. Think of it as USB for AI.

With FirstData's MCP server, your AI agent can:

User: Where can I find official unemployment data for Germany?

Agent: [calls FirstData MCP]
→ Found: Destatis (Federal Statistical Office of Germany)
→ Website: destatis.de
→ API: Available
→ Update frequency: Monthly
→ Authority: Government

No hallucination. No vague citations. Direct links to primary sources.

Quick Setup

Add to your MCP client config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "firstdata": {
      "url": "https://firstdata.deepminer.com.cn/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_TOKEN"
      }
    }
  }
}

Apply for a free API token at firstdata.deepminer.com.cn.

6 Tools at Your Disposal

Tool	What it does
`list_datasources`	Browse by country or domain
`search_keywords`	Search by keywords
`get_details`	Get full metadata for specific sources
`datasource_filter`	Filter by API availability, authority level, etc.
`search_llm_agent`	AI-powered deep search with reasoning
`get_datasource_instructions`	RAG-powered access instructions

Real-World Use Cases

Market Research: "Find all government data sources about renewable energy in Asia" → instantly get IRENA, China NEA, Japan METI, etc.

Academic Research: "Which databases have peer-reviewed health statistics?" → WHO, CDC, China NHC, Eurostat health...

Fact-Checking: "Where does this GDP number actually come from?" → trace back to World Bank, IMF, or national statistics bureau.

Open Source & Growing

FirstData is MIT licensed and actively growing:

Currently: 160+ sources
Target: 1000+ by end of 2026
Community contributions welcome

⭐ Star on GitHub if you find it useful!

What data sources would you like to see added? Drop a comment below!

FirstData: Open Knowledge Base of 160+ Authoritative Global Data Sources with MCP Integration

firstdata — Thu, 05 Mar 2026 02:46:10 +0000

The Problem

AI hallucination is one of the biggest challenges with LLMs today. When your AI agent confidently cites statistics, regulations, or market data — where does that data actually come from?

The solution isn't just bigger models. It's giving AI agents access to verified, authoritative primary sources.

What is FirstData?

FirstData is an open-source knowledge base of 160+ curated authoritative data sources from around the world, with a built-in MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for AI-powered discovery.

Think of it as a "trusted data directory" for AI agents.

What's Inside

🏛️ 59 Government sources — US Census, Federal Reserve, China NBS, Eurostat
🌐 44 International organizations — World Bank, WHO, IMF, WTO, FAO
🔬 28 Research institutions — NBER, CEPR, major universities
📈 14 Market data providers — Bloomberg, LSEG
🗺️ 50+ domains across economics, health, environment, education
🌍 Global coverage — 67 global, 69 national, 20 regional sources

MCP Integration

FirstData provides a standard MCP server that any MCP-compatible AI agent can connect to:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "firstdata": {
      "url": "https://firstdata.deepminer.com.cn/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_TOKEN"
      }
    }
  }
}

6 tools available: search sources, get details, browse by domain/country, get statistics, and submit feedback.

Why It Matters

Combat AI Hallucination — Point your agents to real, verified data sources
Save Research Time — Stop googling for "where to find GDP data" — just ask your AI agent
Structured Metadata — Every source has standardized JSON with descriptions, API URLs, update frequency, and coverage
Bilingual — Full English and Chinese descriptions for every data source
Open Source — MIT licensed, community-driven, continuously updated

Use Cases

Market Research — Find authoritative industry data sources instantly
AI Agent Development — Give your agents trusted data discovery capabilities
Academic Research — Discover core datasets in specialized fields
Fact-Checking — Trace information back to its authoritative origin

Get Started

⭐ Star the repo: github.com/MLT-OSS/FirstData
Apply for API access: firstdata.deepminer.com.cn
Connect via MCP: Add to Claude Desktop, Cursor, or any MCP client
Contribute: Add new data sources via PR — we welcome contributions!

If you find this useful, please ⭐ Star the repo! Contributions welcome.

Open-sourced by Mininglamp Technology (2718.HK)