Search the Web
Your employees can search the internet for real-time information. No setup required. It's built in and always available.
TL;DR
Every employee can search the web and give you synthesized answers with sources. They search automatically when they need current information. No setup required.
How It Works
The employee decides when to search based on your question. If they need current information or don't know something, they search automatically. You don't need to say "search for."
What It Can Do
| Capability | Example |
|---|---|
| Research topics | "What are the latest trends in AI hiring?" |
| Find specific information | "What's the pricing for Notion Teams?" |
| Fact-check claims | "Is it true that GPT-5 was released?" |
| Monitor competitors | "What new features did Competitor X launch this month?" |
| Gather data | "Find the top 10 CRM tools by market share" |
How to Set It Up
Nothing to do. Web Search is enabled for every employee at hire.
You can ask the employee to manage their own tools, or do it manually:
- Select the employee
- Click the Tools tab
- Find "Web Search" in the Actions section
| Action | What it does | How |
|---|---|---|
| Enable / Disable | Controls whether the employee can use this tool | Toggle the switch |
| Tool Rules | Custom instructions that guide how the employee uses this specific tool, e.g. "only search in English" or "always include source URLs" | Expand the tool, then write your rules in the text field |
| Delete | Permanently removes the tool from the employee | Click the delete button |
Tips & Tricks
- Be specific. "Find React 19 migration guides" works better than "find React stuff"
- Include timeframes. "Latest AI news from this week" narrows results
- Name your sources. "Search TechCrunch for..." focuses the research
- Ask for citations. "Include source URLs" ensures you can verify the information
Behind the Scene
| Powered by | DuckDuckGo |
| How it works | The employee sends your query to DuckDuckGo, gets back titles, snippets, and URLs, then synthesizes an answer with sources |
| Multiple searches | The employee may run 2-3 searches with different queries to get better coverage |
Web Search vs Web Scraper vs Browser Controller
| Web Search | Web Scraper | Browser Controller | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Find information via search engine | Read full content from a specific URL | Control a real browser. Navigate, click, fill forms, search Google |
| Input | A question or topic | A URL you already have | Instructions like "go to Google and search for..." |
| Output | Titles, snippets, and source links | Full page text, clean, no ads or nav | Screenshots, extracted data, completed actions |
| Best for | "What's happening with X?" | "Read this article for me" | "Log into this site and download the report" |
| When to use | You don't know where to look | You know the exact page | You need to interact with a page or access login-protected content |
| Requires | Nothing, built in | Nothing, built in | Desktop companion app |
The employee often combines these automatically, searching first to find URLs, then reading the best results in full. For pages that require interaction (login, JavaScript-heavy SPAs, dynamic content), Browser Controller steps in.
What It Costs
| Cost | Runtime credits based on processing time, typically very fast |
| Rate limits | None for typical usage |
Is It Safe
- No tracking. Searches go through a privacy-focused search engine that does not track users or build search profiles
- Public results only. Web search only returns publicly indexed content. No private, login-protected, or paywalled content is accessible
- Results in your chat. Search findings are included in the employee's response, which is saved in your conversation history like any other message
Good to Know
- Results are snippets, not full pages. If you need the complete article, the employee will automatically use Web Scraper to read it
- No login-protected content. Web search only finds publicly indexed pages
- Language. Results default to English. Specify a language if you need results in another language
- Browser Controller can also search. If the employee has the Desktop companion app connected, Browser Controller can open Google in a real browser. This is heavier but useful when you need Google-specific results or need to interact with the search results page
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Does web search cost extra credits? A: No. The search itself is free. You only pay standard credits for the employee's thinking time, same as any other message.
Q: Can the employee search Google instead of DuckDuckGo? A: Web Search uses DuckDuckGo by default. The results are comparable for most research tasks. If you need Google specifically, the employee can use Browser Controller to open Google in a real browser. This requires the Desktop companion app.
Q: Can I disable web search for an employee? A: Yes. Go to the employee's Tools tab and toggle off Web Search. The employee will no longer be able to search the internet.
Q: How current are the search results? A: Real-time. The employee searches the live web every time. Results are as fresh as what you'd get searching yourself.
Q: What's the difference between Web Search, Web Scraper, and Browser Controller? A: Web Search finds information via a search engine (titles, URLs, snippets). Web Scraper reads the full content of a specific URL. Browser Controller operates a real browser and can navigate, click, fill forms, and interact with pages. Each solves a different problem, and the employee picks the right one automatically.