Motherduck Build Data Pipeline

---
name: motherduck-build-data-pipeline
description: Design an end-to-end MotherDuck data pipeline. Use for ETL/ELT workflows -- choosing raw, staging, and analytics boundaries, bulk ingestion paths, transformation sequencing, dlt/dbt integration, publication targets, or whether DuckLake is actually required.
license: MIT
---

# Build a Data Pipeline with MotherDuck

Use this skill when the user needs an ingestion-to-serving workflow, not just a single load step.

This is a use-case skill. It orchestrates `motherduck-connect`, `motherduck-load-data`, `motherduck-model-data`, `motherduck-query`, `motherduck-share-data`, and `motherduck-ducklake`.

## Start Here: Is a MotherDuck Server Active?

Always determine this first.

- If a **remote MotherDuck MCP server** or **local MotherDuck server** is active, use it.
- If the user already knows the destination database, confirm it before designing stages.
- Explore the live environment:
  - current databases and schemas
  - raw, staging, and analytics boundaries if they already exist
  - source tables, target tables, and table grain
  - key columns, date fields, and join keys

Use that discovery to decide whether the pipeline is:… install to load the full skill