How to connect Exa to OpenClaw
Connect Exa to OpenClaw with ClawLink: paste your Exa key once and 17 tools work from chat. No MCP server to run, nothing stored on your machine.
ExaAPI KEYMCPExa focuses on data extraction and search, helping teams gather, analyze, and visualize information from websites, APIs, or internal databases.. Once connected, OpenClaw can read and act on Exa from chat — pairing, token refresh, and tool wiring handled for you.
The usual route to Exa access for OpenClaw is an MCP server you configure and keep running, plus your own OAuth app or API keys. ClawLink gives OpenClaw a more practical Exa setup: install one ClawHub skill, connect Exa in the browser, and OpenClaw can call real Exa actions from any chat surface with no auth, token refresh, or tool wiring to build yourself.
Setup
It takes three steps to connect OpenClaw to Exa.
1Install the plugin
Paste the setup prompt into OpenClaw, or install from the terminal and ask OpenClaw to pair:
openclaw plugins install clawhub:clawlink-plugin- 2
Connect Exa
Paste your API key in the dashboard.
- 3
Use it from chat
Ask OpenClaw: "What can you do with Exa?"
Install by command
The setup prompt above does all of this in one paste. By hand, it is one install command plus a browser approval:
openclaw plugins install clawhub:clawlink-pluginThen ask OpenClaw to set up ClawLink. It starts browser pairing and prints an approval link — open it, approve the device, return to the chat, and say done. Finally, connect Exa in the ClawLink dashboard — paste your Exa API key once.
Verify the connection by asking OpenClaw:
Use Exa to answer and walk me through the result in plain English.
Using a different agent?
The OpenClaw plugin is one client of ClawLink's MCP server. Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, or any agent that can run a shell command pairs with the same ClawLink account through the CLI:
npx -y @useclawlink/cli loginlogin opens the same browser approval and stores a credential locally. Once Exa is connected in the dashboard, that agent calls the same 17 Exa tools over MCP. Full setup for MCP clients and shell agents: connect apps to any AI agent.
Exa MCP for OpenClaw
Looking for a Exa MCP server for OpenClaw? ClawLink connects Exa to OpenClaw and exposes 17 Exa tools your agent can call over MCP, with hosted auth and nothing to run or maintain yourself. Using Hermes instead? The Hermes Exa integration works the same way.
What the OpenClaw Exa integration can do
17 Exa tools are ready for OpenClaw once the account is connected. The 15 below are the ones people reach for most; your agent can call all 17.
15 of 17 Exa tools for OpenClaw
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
Answer exa_answer | Generates a direct, citation-backed answer to a clear natural language question or topic using |
Get API key exa_get_api_key | Retrieve details of a specific API key by its ID |
Get contents action exa_get_contents_action | Retrieve text / highlights / summary / subpages from URLs |
Get event exa_get_event | Get details of a specific event by its ID |
Get research exa_get_research | Retrieve the status and results of a previously created research task |
List events exa_list_events | List all events that have occurred in the system |
List imports exa_list_imports | List all imports for the Webset |
List research exa_list_research | Retrieve a paginated list of your research tasks |
List webhooks exa_list_webhooks | List all webhooks for Websets |
Search exa_search | Web search via the Exa engine |
Create import exa_create_import | Create a new import to upload data into a Webset |
Create monitor exa_create_monitor | Create a new Monitor |
Create research exa_create_research | Creates an asynchronous research task that explores the web, gathers sources, synthesizes |
Create webset exa_create_webset | Create a new Webset with search, import, and enrichment setup |
Update import exa_update_import | Update an import configuration by ID |
Try it: find the Exa tool you need
Browse the 15 Exa tools
Click any tool to see exactly what OpenClaw can do and copy a ready-to-use prompt.
Example prompts
Use Exa to answer and walk me through the result in plain English.
Pull the relevant data from Exa, summarize it in plain English, and point out anything that needs attention.
Pull the relevant data from Exa, summarize it in plain English, and point out anything that needs attention.
Pull the relevant data from Exa, summarize it in plain English, and point out anything that needs attention.
ClawLink vs. building it yourself
The alternative to ClawLink is usually manual API key setup plus your own token handling, permission troubleshooting, and tool plumbing for OpenClaw. That is fine if you want to build and maintain the integration yourself. Most teams just want Exa working from chat.
| Manual | ClawLink | |
|---|---|---|
| Credential handling | Collect, validate, store, and rotate the Exa API key yourself, then make sure every tool call uses the right account. | Users complete the hosted ClawLink setup once and the connected Exa account becomes available to the agent without you building credential management. |
| Ongoing maintenance | You own refresh logic, permission debugging, environment config, and every provider-specific edge case for Exa. | ClawLink handles the repetitive integration plumbing so your team can focus on the workflow instead of the infrastructure. |
| Agent usability | You still need to expose the right Exa actions to the runtime in a format your agent can reliably use. | 17 tools for Exa are already exposed through ClawLink, so the agent can read and act from chat immediately. |
ClawLink vs. Composio
Composio also exposes Exa to AI agents. It is developer infrastructure: Python and TypeScript SDKs, an MCP server, and a catalog past 1,000 apps, aimed at teams shipping agent products. ClawLink is built for OpenClaw users instead. You install the plugin once, connect Exa in the browser, and the 17 tools above work from chat. There is no SDK and no config file, and the Exa key you paste at setup is stored server-side rather than kept in your environment. Choosing between them? Read the full Composio alternatives comparison.
Troubleshooting
OpenClaw installed the Exa skill but can't call the tools
The ClawHub skill teaches OpenClaw about Exa, but the calls run through the ClawLink plugin and your connected account. Make sure Exa is connected in the dashboard, then start a fresh chat so OpenClaw reloads the tool catalog. If OpenClaw runs as a persistent gateway, restart it so the new tools register.
Connection succeeds but no tools appear
Reconnect Exa from the dashboard, then start a fresh chat if the runtime still has the old tool catalog loaded.
"Tool schema not loaded yet" error when calling Exa tools
Exa tool schemas load on demand the first time a tool runs and are cached after that, so this error usually clears on its own: wait a few seconds and retry the same request. If every Exa call keeps failing with it in a fresh chat, reconnect from the dashboard, and contact support if it still persists — that pattern points to a configuration problem on our side, not something you can fix by reconnecting again.
Exa returns 403 or "permission denied" on one action while others work
Two usual causes. The connected account may not have access to the specific workspace, inbox, store, or project in the request — check that first. If access looks right, the agent may have sent a placeholder value (like "YOUR_ID" or an example id from documentation) instead of a real one: ask it to run a list or search tool first, then retry the action with a real id from those results. Most failures at this stage are one of these two, not ClawLink bugs.
API key setup works but results look incomplete
Double-check that the API key for Exa has the right scopes or account access. A valid key can still be too limited for some reads or writes.
FAQ
Is there a OpenClaw Exa integration?
Yes. ClawLink is the fastest way to connect OpenClaw to Exa: link your Exa account once in the browser and OpenClaw can call the Exa API through 17 ready-made tools — no custom code or token handling.
How do I add Exa to OpenClaw with ClawLink?
Paste the setup prompt from this page into OpenClaw. It installs the ClawLink Exa skill from ClawHub, then you click Connect in the dashboard to authorize Exa. OpenClaw calls the tools from the next message — no config files, and the Exa key you paste is stored server-side instead of in your environment.
How long does it take to connect Exa to OpenClaw?
About two minutes. Sign in, click Connect next to Exa in the dashboard, authenticate, and OpenClaw can use it from the next chat message.
Why use ClawLink instead of wiring Exa up myself?
The alternative to ClawLink is usually manual API key setup plus your own token handling, permission troubleshooting, and tool plumbing for OpenClaw. That is fine if you want to build and maintain the integration yourself. Most teams just want Exa working from chat.
OpenClaw installed the Exa skill but can't call the tools
The ClawHub skill teaches OpenClaw about Exa, but the calls run through the ClawLink plugin and your connected account. Make sure Exa is connected in the dashboard, then start a fresh chat so OpenClaw reloads the tool catalog. If OpenClaw runs as a persistent gateway, restart it so the new tools register.
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