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Exa

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Exa MCP — neural/semantic web search + content retrieval (exa.ai)

Source code Website Documentation

Install

Add this to your client's MCP configuration (Claude Desktop: claude_desktop_config.json; Cursor: .cursor/mcp.json; VS Code and others use the same "mcpServers" shape).

Remote (streamable-http)
Claude Code 
claude mcp add --transport http exa 'https://gateway.pipeworx.io/exa/mcp'
JSON configuration (Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code) 
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "exa": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/exa/mcp"
        }
    }
}

Documentation

From the project's README on GitHub, refreshed weekly. Links open on GitHub.

Contents
  1. mcp-exa
  2. Tools
  3. Quick Start
  4. No MCP client? Call it over HTTP
  5. Standalone (no gateway account)
  6. Using with ask_pipeworx
  7. More
  8. License

mcp-exa

Exa MCP — neural/semantic web search + content retrieval (exa.ai)

Part of Pipeworx — an MCP gateway connecting AI agents to 1866+ live data sources. This is an independent, unofficial integration — not affiliated with, endorsed by, or published by the upstream provider.

Tools

ToolDescription
searchNeural/semantic web search — find pages by meaning, not just keywords. Returns title, URL, published date, author, and relevance score. Optionally retrieve clean page text inline. Example: search({ query: "startups building AI agents for customer support", num_results: 10, type: "neural" })
get_contentsRetrieve clean, parsed page contents (text) for one or more Exa result IDs or URLs. Use after search to read the full content of pages. Example: get_contents({ ids: ["https://example.com/article";] })
find_similarFind pages similar to a given URL using neural/semantic matching. Returns title, URL, relevance score, and published date. Example: find_similar({ url: "https://example.com/great-article";, num_results: 10 })

Quick Start

Add to your MCP client (Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, etc.):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "exa": {
      "url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/exa/mcp"
    }
  }
}
What this endpoint actually serves

tools/list at https://gateway.pipeworx.io/exa/mcp returns the tools in the table above plus the shared Pipeworx meta-tools — ask_pipeworx, discover_tools, search_within, remember/recall and the rest of the gateway-wide set. So the tool count you see is larger than this table: a single-pack endpoint currently lists roughly 30 shared tools alongside the pack's own. The connection's initialize response states its exact scope, and is the authoritative answer for a given day.

This is deliberate, not multiplexing by accident. The meta-tools are what let a scoped connection answer a question this pack does not cover — via ask_pipeworx, which routes across the whole catalog — without you adding a second MCP server. There is currently no way to mount a pack endpoint without them; if the extra schemas cost you more context than the routing is worth, connect to the full gateway once rather than to several pack endpoints.

Or connect to the full Pipeworx gateway to get every pack's tools listed directly, instead of just this one's:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pipeworx": {
      "url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Both URLs reach the same gateway and the same 1866+ data sources. The only difference is which pack's tools are listed directly; ask_pipeworx reaches all of them from either one.

No MCP client? Call it over HTTP

Our exa key is reserved for paid accounts, so an anonymous call to POST https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/exa_search needs your own key passed as _apiKey alongside the arguments. Inspect any tool: GET https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/exa_search. Find one: POST https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/search_packs with {"query":"..."}.

Standalone (no gateway account)

This package also runs as a local stdio MCP server — no Pipeworx account, no gateway round-trip:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "exa": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@pipeworx/mcp-exa"]
    }
  }
}

Or run it directly to confirm it starts:

npx -y @pipeworx/mcp-exa

It speaks MCP over stdin/stdout and answers initialize/tools/list/tools/call for only this pack's tools — none of the shared meta-tools the gateway connection above adds. Same source, same tools, no ask_pipeworx routing.

Using with ask_pipeworx

Instead of calling tools directly, you can ask questions in plain English — this works on the pack endpoint above as well as on the full gateway:

ask_pipeworx({ question: "your question about Exa data" })

The gateway picks the right tool and fills the arguments automatically.

More

License

MIT

Frequently asked questions

What is Exa?

Exa MCP — neural/semantic web search + content retrieval (exa.ai)

How do I install Exa?

It runs as a remote server. In Claude Code: claude mcp add --transport http exa 'https://gateway.pipeworx.io/exa/mcp'. For other clients, paste the JSON configuration from this page into their MCP settings.

Does Exa need an API key?

Its registry entry lists no required key or secret. Some features may still need an account with the service it connects to.

Is Exa open source?

Yes. Its code is on GitHub under the MIT license.

Who maintains Exa?

It is published by pipeworx-io. AI.tn lists it but does not maintain or endorse it.

From the official MCP Registry. Listing is not an endorsement: review a server's code and permissions before giving it access to your data.