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Overview

What it does

Exa is an AI-powered search engine that retrieves high-quality web content using semantic search. Unlike traditional keyword search, Exa understands the meaning and context of your queries to find the most relevant results.Key Features:
  • Semantic web search
  • Content retrieval and extraction
  • Find similar pages
  • Highlights extraction
  • Search by domain and date
  • Filter by content type
  • Auto-generated snippets

Use Cases

Research & Intelligence:
  • Find expert articles on specific topics
  • Track competitor content and mentions
  • Gather industry news and trends
  • Research technical documentation
  • Discover similar resources
Content Discovery:
  • Find high-quality sources for research
  • Discover related articles and papers
  • Extract key highlights from pages
  • Build knowledge bases from web content
Automation Workflows:
  • Monitor web mentions and updates
  • Aggregate content from multiple sources
  • Build news digests and briefings
  • Enrich data with web context

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Quick Start

1

Get Your Exa API Key

Sign up for Exa and obtain your API key:
  1. Visit exa.ai and create an account
  2. Navigate to your dashboard
  3. Generate a new API key
  4. Copy the key for the next step
Store your API key securely. You’ll need it to connect Exa to NimbleBrain Studio.
2

Connect Exa to Studio

Add Exa to your NimbleBrain workspace:
  1. Navigate to Connections in the sidebar
  2. Click Browse Catalog
  3. Search for “Exa”
  4. Click Install
  5. Enter your API key when prompted
  6. Click Connect
Your API key is encrypted and stored securely. NimbleBrain never shares your credentials.
3

Verify Connection

Once connected, test the integration:
"Search Exa for recent articles about artificial intelligence"
Other test prompts:
  • “Find pages similar to https://example.com”
  • “Get the full content from the top 3 results about machine learning”
  • “Extract highlights from articles about climate change”

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Available Tools

The Exa connection provides 4 core tools for semantic search and content retrieval:

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Search Tools

Discover pages similar to a given URL.
ToolDescription
EXA_FIND_SIMILARFind web pages similar to a reference URL. Great for discovering related content.
Parameters:
  • url - The reference URL to find similar pages for
  • numResults - Number of similar pages to return (default: 10, max: 100)
  • category - Filter by content category
  • startPublishedDate - Only results after this date
  • endPublishedDate - Only results before this date
  • excludeSourceDomain - Exclude results from the same domain
Example Usage:
"Find pages similar to this research paper: https://arxiv.org/abs/2103.00020"
Use excludeSourceDomain: true to discover content from different sources, not just more pages from the same site.
Retrieve full content from search results or specific URLs.
ToolDescription
EXA_GET_CONTENTSFetch the full text content, HTML, or cleaned text from web pages.
Parameters:
  • ids - Array of Exa result IDs (from search results)
  • text - Include cleaned text content (default: true)
  • highlights - Include key highlights/snippets
  • summary - Include AI-generated summary
  • html - Include raw HTML content
Example Usage:
"Get the full content and summary from the top 5 results about climate science"
The text field provides cleaned, readable content without ads or navigation elements.
Extract key highlights and snippets from search results.
ToolDescription
EXA_HIGHLIGHTSGet the most relevant excerpts and highlights from web pages based on your query.
Parameters:
  • ids - Array of Exa result IDs (from search results)
  • query - Optional query to focus highlights on specific aspects
  • numSentences - Number of sentences per highlight (default: 3)
  • highlightsPerUrl - Number of highlights per page (default: 3)
Example Usage:
"Extract highlights about pricing from the top competitor websites"
Highlights are automatically selected based on relevance to your query, saving you from reading full pages.

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Example Workflows

Scenario: Gather recent research on a topicPrompt:
"Search Exa for research papers about large language models published in 2024, get the content from the top 5 results, and summarize the key findings"
What happens:
  • Performs semantic search with date filter
  • Retrieves full content from top results
  • Provides summaries and key insights

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Authentication

API Key Authentication: This connection uses API key authentication.

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How It Works

When you connect Exa in NimbleBrain Studio:
  1. You’ll be prompted to enter your Exa API key
  2. The key is encrypted and stored securely in your workspace
  3. All API requests include the key in the authorization header
  4. You can rotate or update your key anytime in connection settings

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Security Best Practices

Protecting Your API Key:
  • Never share your API key publicly
  • Don’t commit API keys to version control
  • Rotate keys periodically
  • Use separate keys for different environments
  • Revoke unused keys in your Exa dashboard
You can manage your API keys in the Exa dashboard under Settings. Create separate keys for different applications to improve security and tracking.

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Rate Limits

Exa enforces rate limits based on your plan:
PlanMonthly SearchesRate Limit
Free1,000 searches10 requests/minute
Basic10,000 searches60 requests/minute
Pro100,000 searches300 requests/minute
EnterpriseCustomCustom
Usage Tips:
  • Monitor your usage in the Exa dashboard
  • Batch requests when possible
  • Cache frequently accessed content
  • Use appropriate numResults limits
  • Consider upgrading for higher volume needs
Studio automatically handles rate limiting and will retry requests with exponential backoff if limits are reached.

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Troubleshooting

Issue: API key not acceptedSolutions:
  • Verify you copied the entire API key
  • Check for extra spaces or characters
  • Ensure the key hasn’t been revoked
  • Generate a new key in Exa dashboard
  • Verify your Exa account is active
Issue: Search returns empty resultsSolutions:
  • Try a different query phrasing
  • Remove restrictive filters (dates, domains)
  • Switch between neural and keyword search types
  • Broaden your search terms
  • Check if the content exists in Exa’s index
Issue: Cannot fetch page contentSolutions:
  • Verify the URL is accessible
  • Some sites block automated access
  • Try the highlights option instead of full content
  • Check if the page requires authentication
  • Content may have been removed or moved
Issue: Too many requests errorSolutions:
  • Wait for rate limit to reset
  • Reduce request frequency
  • Upgrade to a higher plan
  • Batch operations to reduce total requests
  • Studio will automatically retry after cooldown
Issue: Query parameters rejectedSolutions:
  • Check date format (must be ISO 8601)
  • Verify numResults is within limits (1-100)
  • Ensure domain filters are valid domains
  • Category must be a valid Exa category
  • Review the Exa API documentation for valid values
Issue: Results not relevant enoughSolutions:
  • Use neural search for semantic understanding
  • Make queries more specific and detailed
  • Use date filters to get recent content
  • Exclude irrelevant domains
  • Try findSimilar with a good reference URL
  • Experiment with different query phrasings

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Best Practices

Search Optimization

  • Use descriptive, natural language queries
  • Leverage neural search for semantic understanding
  • Filter by date for timely content
  • Use domain filters to focus on quality sources
  • Start with fewer results, expand if needed

Content Retrieval

  • Request only needed fields (text, highlights, summary)
  • Use highlights for quick scanning
  • Cache frequently accessed content
  • Batch content requests when possible
  • Handle missing/blocked content gracefully

Rate Limit Management

  • Monitor usage in Exa dashboard
  • Cache results when appropriate
  • Batch similar queries together
  • Use reasonable numResults values
  • Implement retry logic for rate limits

Query Design

  • Be specific about what you’re looking for
  • Use context words for better semantic matching
  • Combine search with findSimilar for depth
  • Filter by category for focused results
  • Test queries to refine results

Exa Documentation

Official Exa API documentation

Exa Dashboard

Manage API keys and view usage

API Reference

Detailed API endpoint reference

Exa Blog

Updates and best practices
Need help? Join the NimbleBrain Discord or email [email protected]