Exa

Agents can search the public web and read the pages they find through Exa. It is a quick way to give an agent current information from outside your company, and it needs no account at all.

Exa appears in the catalog on every instance; no experimental setting is needed.

Before you connect

Nothing. This connection uses Exa's public search server, so there is no sign-in, no API key, and no bill.

Connect Exa

  1. Open Connectors and select Exa.
  2. Read the access line above the main button. It says who the connection belongs to and which agents can use it. Select Change to narrow the agents.
  3. Select Connect.

Choose access

The public server offers two read-only actions: web_search_exa for searching and web_fetch_exa for reading a page. Exa's account-only tools, such as its research agent and advanced search options, are not part of this connection.

Because it only reads the public web, this is one of the lower-stakes connectors to share. Two things are still worth keeping in mind:

  • What Exa sees. Your agents' search terms go to Exa. Keep private details out of queries.
  • What agents do with results. Search results are outside content. An agent should treat them as information to check, not instructions to follow, and should keep the source links with anything it reports. See Set action permissions for keeping follow-on actions in other connectors behind Ask first.

Try it

Search the web with Exa for the official documentation of a tool we use, and give me the top three results with their links.

Open the links the agent returns. Results you can check confirm both the connection and the agent's permission.

Note: Illustrative task, not a recorded test result.

Troubleshooting and limitations

Problem Likely cause Fix
Searches start failing after heavy use The public server's free allowance or rate limit Slow down, or use another search connector for heavy work
An agent cannot find Exa's research or advanced tools They need an Exa account and are not on the public server Use the search and fetch actions only
A page cannot be read The site blocks automated reading, or needs a login Try another source
An agent reports a claim without a link It did not keep the citation Ask it to include the source URL with each fact

Limitations: public web only, and only the two actions the public server exposes. There is no account-backed method in this release.

Sources