Perplexity Search API

Clawdbot uses Perplexity Search API for the web_search tool when provider: "perplexity" is set. Perplexity Search returns structured results (title, URL, snippet) for fast research.

Getting a Perplexity API key

Create a Perplexity account at https://www.perplexity.ai/settings/api
Generate an API key in the dashboard
Store the key in config (recommended) or set PERPLEXITY_API_KEY in the Gateway environment.

Config example

{
  tools: {
    web: {
      search: {
        provider: "perplexity",
        perplexity: {
          apiKey: "pplx-..."
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

Switching from Brave

{
  tools: {
    web: {
      search: {
        provider: "perplexity",
        perplexity: {
          apiKey: "pplx-..."
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

Where to set the key (recommended)

Recommended: run clawdbot configure --section web. It stores the key in ~/.clawdbot/clawdbot.json under tools.web.search.perplexity.apiKey.

Environment alternative: set PERPLEXITY_API_KEY in the Gateway process environment. For a gateway install, put it in ~/.clawdbot/.env (or your service environment). See Env vars.

Notes

Perplexity Search API returns structured results (title, URL, snippet) similar to Brave Search
Results are cached for 15 minutes by default (configurable via cacheTtlMinutes)
Supports country-specific search via the country parameter
Supports domain filtering (can be added as a future enhancement)

See Web tools for the full web_search configuration.

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