serpapi

What This Skill Does

The SerpAPI skill enables your OpenClaw agent to perform powerful, targeted queries across Google's search infrastructure. By acting as a bridge between the agent and the SerpAPI service, this skill allows for real-time web lookups, news aggregation, and local business discovery. It goes beyond simple keyword searches by supporting granular configuration, including location-based results, language localization, and multi-engine selection. Whether you are researching international market trends, tracking breaking news in specific regions, or scouting local service providers, this tool provides a structured data format that the agent can digest and interpret to solve complex user requests.

Installation

To install this skill, run the following command in your terminal: clawhub install openclaw/skills/skills/ericsantos/serpapi-search. After installation, you must configure your API credentials. Set the SERPAPI_API_KEY environment variable directly in your shell or, for persistent storage, create the directory ~/.config/serpapi and save your key into the api_key file. Ensure this file is restricted using chmod 600 to maintain security for your API token.

Use Cases

• Market Research: Gather competitive intelligence or B2B insights by searching industry-specific keywords across different global markets.
• Content Curation: Aggregate the latest news articles for specific regions to keep a newsletter or briefing document updated with fresh, localized data.
• Local Logistics: Find business listings, addresses, or contact information for local enterprises in specific cities around the world.
• Trend Analysis: Compare search engine results for the same topic across different countries to understand cultural and regional variations in search trends.

Example Prompts

1. "Search for the latest trends in renewable energy in Brazil and summarize the top three news articles in Portuguese."
2. "Find the top 5 AI-focused software development companies located in San Francisco and list their primary service offerings."
3. "Look up the current status of the tech industry in Germany using Google search and provide a brief overview of recent developments."

Tips & Limitations

• Rate Limits: Remember that your SerpAPI plan has specific limits. Check your SerpAPI dashboard to ensure your usage remains within your tiered subscription.
• Precision: Use the --location flag for local results rather than just adding city names to the search query, as the API handles geolocation parameters more reliably.
• Privacy: Be aware that all queries are routed through external API endpoints. Avoid searching for highly sensitive or proprietary data.
• Localization: Always combine --country with the appropriate --lang flag to ensure the most relevant results from the target region's index.