perplexity-search

SKILL.md

Perplexity AI Search

Web search with AI-powered answers, deep research, and chain-of-thought reasoning.

When to Use

Direct web search for ranked results (no AI synthesis)

AI-synthesized research with citations

Chain-of-thought reasoning for complex decisions

Deep comprehensive research on topics

Models (2025)

Model
Purpose

sonar
Lightweight search with grounding

sonar-pro
Advanced search for complex queries

sonar-reasoning-pro
Chain of thought reasoning

sonar-deep-research
Expert-level exhaustive research

Usage

Quick question (AI answer)

uv run python scripts/mcp/perplexity_search.py \
    --ask "What is the latest version of Python?"

Direct web search (ranked results, no AI)

uv run python scripts/mcp/perplexity_search.py \
    --search "SQLite graph database patterns" \
    --max-results 5 \
    --recency week

AI-synthesized research

uv run python scripts/mcp/perplexity_search.py \
    --research "compare FastAPI vs Django for microservices"

Chain-of-thought reasoning

uv run python scripts/mcp/perplexity_search.py \
    --reason "should I use Neo4j or SQLite for small graph under 10k nodes?"

Deep comprehensive research

uv run python scripts/mcp/perplexity_search.py \
    --deep "state of AI agent observability 2025"

Parameters

Parameter
Description

--ask
Quick question with AI answer (sonar)

--search
Direct web search - ranked results without AI synthesis

--research
AI-synthesized research (sonar-pro)

--reason
Chain-of-thought reasoning (sonar-reasoning-pro)

--deep
Deep comprehensive research (sonar-deep-research)

Search-specific options

Parameter
Description

--max-results N
Number of results (1-20, default: 10)

--recency
Filter: day, week, month, year

--domains
Limit to specific domains

Mode Selection Guide

Need
Use
Why

Quick fact
--ask
Fast, lightweight

Find sources
--search
Raw results, no AI overhead

Synthesized answer
--research
AI combines multiple sources

Complex decision
--reason
Chain-of-thought analysis

Comprehensive report
--deep
Exhaustive multi-source research

Examples

# Find recent sources on a topic
uv run python scripts/mcp/perplexity_search.py \
    --search "OpenTelemetry AI agent tracing" \
    --recency month --max-results 5

# Get AI synthesis
uv run python scripts/mcp/perplexity_search.py \
    --research "best practices for AI agent logging 2025"

# Make a decision
uv run python scripts/mcp/perplexity_search.py \
    --reason "microservices vs monolith for startup MVP"

# Deep dive
uv run python scripts/mcp/perplexity_search.py \
    --deep "comprehensive guide to building feedback loops for autonomous agents"

API Key Required

Requires PERPLEXITY_API_KEY in environment or ~/.claude/.env.