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BlocksTools & Utilities
Web Search Tool
Web Search Tool
Search the web using OpenAI's tool with real-time results. Includes source verification, citation tracking, and contextual answers.
Use this when you want OpenAI's built-in web_search_preview tool forced on every query so answers are grounded in live web results.
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Problems solved
Technical challenges this implementation handles out of the box.
- Force OpenAI web_search_preview on every query
- Return AI-synthesized answers grounded in web search
- Configure search context size and optional user location
Use cases
Products and workflows this pattern is designed to support.
- Web search answer boxes
- Research lookup tools
- Local-aware search demos
- OpenAI web search integration samples
Compare with
Similar patterns, and when each one is the better fit.
Claude Web Search ToolUse this when you need web lookups inside streamText on Anthropic without adding a separate search API, using Claude's provider-native search tool.
Search - Exa AI (robust)FreeUse this when you want Exa search split into separate tools for news, Reddit, Wikipedia, and URLs, so the model picks the right source.
@exalabs webSearch ToolUse this when you want Exa search in an agent without defining any tool yourself, by importing the ready-made webSearch tool from @exalabs/ai-sdk.
Exa Web Search ToolUse this when you want to define the Exa search tool yourself with the Exa SDK and control how results are trimmed before reaching the model.
Setup
Requirements, wiring steps, and what this pattern adds to your project.
Getting started
Pick how you want to pull this pattern in. Then wire env vars and routes the same way.
- 1
Download → Next.js app
Use Download → Next.js app in the preview toolbar. You get a zip scaffold (Pro downloads rewrite preview `/view/.../api/*` paths to `/api/*` automatically).
- 2
Extract the zip and install dependencies
Unzip the archive, then run `pnpm install` (or npm / yarn) in the project folder.
- 3
Fill .env.local
The download includes .env.local placeholders when needed. Add real values for: OPENAI_API_KEY.
- 4
Customize the agent and tool files
Adapt prompts, tools, and stop conditions in the generated project for your product.
- 5
Run the app and open the pattern route
Run `pnpm dev`, open the setup/checklist page if present, then navigate to the generated pattern route and verify responses.
Environment variables
OPENAI_API_KEYGet key
Capabilities
AI SDK APIs
generateTexttoolProviders
OpenAI
Files added
3 files
app/page.tsxapp/layout.tsxREADME.md
Dependencies
13 total
npm packages
9AISDK@hookform/resolversUpstashlucide-reactmotionNext.jsReactreact-hook-formZod
Registry components
buttonforminputskeleton
Critical files
1 file
lib/actions.tsCore AI web search pipeline: uses OpenAI responses model with the webSearchPreview tool and forced toolChoice to always perform web search. Configures search context size and extracts normalized sources.
Requirements
- Complexity
- Beginner
- Setup time
- ~5 minutes
- Node
- >=18.0.0
