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Grok Search

Grok Search

Section titled “Grok Search”

OpenClaw supports Grok as a web_search provider, using xAI web-grounded responses to produce AI-synthesized answers backed by live search results with citations.

The same XAI_API_KEY can also power the built-in x_search tool for X (formerly Twitter) post search. If you store the key under plugins.entries.xai.config.webSearch.apiKey, OpenClaw now reuses it as a fallback for the bundled xAI model provider too.

For post-level X metrics such as reposts, replies, bookmarks, or views, prefer x_search with the exact post URL or status ID instead of a broad search query.

Onboarding and configure

Section titled “Onboarding and configure”

If you choose Grok during:

  • openclaw onboard
  • openclaw configure --section web

OpenClaw can show a separate follow-up step to enable x_search with the same XAI_API_KEY. That follow-up:

  • only appears after you choose Grok for web_search
  • is not a separate top-level web-search provider choice
  • can optionally set the x_search model during the same flow

If you skip it, you can enable or change x_search later in config.

Get an API key

Section titled “Get an API key”

  1. Create a key

    Get an API key from xAI.

  2. Store the key

    Set XAI_API_KEY in the Gateway environment, or configure via:

    Terminal window
    openclaw configure --section web

Config

Section titled “Config”
{
  plugins: {
    entries: {
      xai: {
        config: {
          webSearch: {
            apiKey: "xai-...", // optional if XAI_API_KEY is set
          },
        },
      },
    },
  },
  tools: {
    web: {
      search: {
        provider: "grok",
      },
    },
  },
}

Environment alternative: set XAI_API_KEY in the Gateway environment. For a gateway install, put it in ~/.openclaw/.env.

How it works

Section titled “How it works”

Grok uses xAI web-grounded responses to synthesize answers with inline citations, similar to Gemini’s Google Search grounding approach.

Supported parameters

Section titled “Supported parameters”

Grok search supports the standard query and count parameters. Provider-specific filters are not currently supported.

Section titled “Related”