Web search tool

The web search tools allows the model to draw information from open sources for more accurate and relevant date responses. The search can be performed across the entire internet or within a limited list of websites. You can enable the tool in Responses API and Realtime API. For the prices, see Yandex AI Studio pricing policy.

If the tool is enabled, the model independently decides whether it needs additional information to form a response. To allow the model to search through the internet when generating its responses, specify web_search in your request parameters. When connecting the tool via Responses API, you can specify up to 5 websites in the allowed_domains array. If the list of websites is not specified, the search will be performed across the entire internet and will take more time. Additionally, you can limit the search region by specifying the region code in the region field of the user_location parameter.

response = client.responses.create(
    model=f"gpt://{YANDEX_CLOUD_FOLDER}/{YANDEX_CLOUD_MODEL}",
    input="Create a brief overview of the latest LLM news in 2025, only facts, no specualtion.",
    tools=[
        {
            "web_search": {
                "filters": {
                    "allowed_domains": [
                        "habr.ru"
                    ]
                },
                "user_location": {
                    "region": "213", # New York
                }
            }
        }
    ],
    temperature=0.3,
    max_output_tokens=1000
)

The response, enriched by the internet search, contains the annotations object. Use it to track and show the data sources to the user. The url field of the annotations object contains the address of the website where the information was found. All other fields of the object are filled with default values to maintain compatibility with OpenAI:

"annotations": [
  {
    "end_index": 0,
    "start_index": 0,
    "title": "",
    "type": "url_citation",
    "url": "www.rbc.ru"
  },
  {
    "end_index": 0,
    "start_index": 0,
    "title": "",
    "type": "url_citation",
    "url": "ria.ru"
  }
]

Possible use casesPossible use cases

The web search tool can prove useful in various scenarios:

• Updating reference information: Creating a summary of changes in app store rules this week.
• Competitive analysis: Gathering competitors' new features and use cases based on the information published on their websites.
• Fact-checking press releases: Verifying quotes and figures before publication.
• Trend radar: Compiling a quick news overview on a specific topic for a daily or weekly digest.
• Meeting preparation: Making a description of a client company before the meeting.