meta-pipe: An LLM-agent pipeline for end-to-end automated systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective: To describe the architecture and design rationale of meta-pipe, an open-source large language model (LLM)-agent pipeline that integrates the complete systematic review and meta-analysis (SR/MA) workflow -- from literature search through statistical analysis, manuscript generation, and quality assurance -- with mandatory human oversight at critical decision points. Study Design and Setting: We developed a 10-stage modular pipeline integrating Claude (Anthropic; Opus 4 for reasoning, Haiku 3.5 for classification) for LLM-assisted screening and extraction, Python (~3,600 lines of code) for automation, R (meta, metafor, gemtc, netmeta) for statistical analysis, and Quarto for manuscript rendering. Five mandatory human decision points enforce oversight. We systematically compared meta-pipe's capabilities with five existing SR automation tools based on published documentation as of March 2026. Results: meta-pipe offers four capabilities not available in any single existing tool: automated manuscript generation from analysis outputs, semi-automated GRADE assessment, overclaim detection (12 predefined patterns), and dual-paradigm network meta-analysis (Bayesian and frequentist). Estimated API cost is 15-30 per typical 5-10 study review. No validation data are reported; this is a system description, not a validation study. Conclusion: End-to-end AI-assisted evidence synthesis is architecturally feasible as an open-source tool with mandatory human oversight. Formal validation reproducing published Cochrane reviews is underway and essential before routine use.