# How to integrate Exa MCP with Mastra AI

```json
{
  "title": "How to integrate Exa MCP with Mastra AI",
  "toolkit": "Exa",
  "toolkit_slug": "exa",
  "framework": "Mastra AI",
  "framework_slug": "mastra-ai",
  "url": "https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/mastra-ai",
  "markdown_url": "https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/mastra-ai.md",
  "updated_at": "2026-05-06T08:11:01.203Z"
}
```

## Introduction

This guide walks you through connecting Exa to Mastra AI using the Composio tool router. By the end, you'll have a working Exa agent that can summarize recent news articles on ai safety, find similar research papers to this url, create a webset for quarterly sales data through natural language commands.
This guide will help you understand how to give your Mastra AI agent real control over a Exa account through Composio's Exa MCP server.
Before we dive in, let's take a quick look at the key ideas and tools involved.

## Also integrate Exa with

- [OpenAI Agents SDK](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/open-ai-agents-sdk)
- [Claude Agent SDK](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/claude-agents-sdk)
- [Claude Code](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/claude-code)
- [Claude Cowork](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/claude-cowork)
- [Codex](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/codex)
- [OpenClaw](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/openclaw)
- [Hermes](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/hermes-agent)
- [CLI](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/cli)
- [Google ADK](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/google-adk)
- [LangChain](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/langchain)
- [Vercel AI SDK](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/ai-sdk)
- [LlamaIndex](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/llama-index)
- [CrewAI](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/crew-ai)

## TL;DR

Here's what you'll learn:
- Set up your environment so Mastra, OpenAI, and Composio work together
- Create a Tool Router session in Composio that exposes Exa tools
- Connect Mastra's MCP client to the Composio generated MCP URL
- Fetch Exa tool definitions and attach them as a toolset
- Build a Mastra agent that can reason, call tools, and return structured results
- Run an interactive CLI where you can chat with your Exa agent

## What is Mastra AI?

Mastra AI is a TypeScript framework for building AI agents with tool support. It provides a clean API for creating agents that can use external services through MCP.
Key features include:
- MCP Client: Built-in support for Model Context Protocol servers
- Toolsets: Organize tools into logical groups
- Step Callbacks: Monitor and debug agent execution
- OpenAI Integration: Works with OpenAI models via @ai-sdk/openai

## What is the Exa MCP server, and what's possible with it?

The Exa MCP server is an implementation of the Model Context Protocol that connects your AI agent and assistants like Claude, Cursor, etc directly to your Exa account. It provides structured and secure access to your Exa data platform, so your agent can perform actions like extracting answers from web data, running semantic searches, managing imports, and automating monitoring across your datasets.
- Citation-backed question answering: Have your agent generate direct, source-cited answers or detailed summaries for your research questions using Exa’s advanced search.
- Semantic similarity search: Quickly find web pages or documents that are semantically related to a given URL, complete with highlights or summaries for context.
- Data import and webset management: Let your agent create, configure, or delete imports and websets to streamline data gathering and enrichment workflows.
- Automated data monitoring: Schedule and manage monitors for websets to keep your data fresh and up-to-date with minimal manual intervention.
- Event tracking and retrieval: Access a full history of system events or fetch details for specific events to stay on top of activity within your Exa environment.

## Supported Tools

| Tool slug | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| `EXA_ANSWER` | Generate an answer | Generates a direct, citation-backed answer to a clear natural language question or topic using exa's search, adept at both specific answers and detailed summaries for open-ended queries. |
| `EXA_CREATE_IMPORT` | Create Import | Tool to create a new import to upload data into a webset. use when you need to initialize an import before uploading the data file. |
| `EXA_CREATE_MONITOR` | Create a Monitor | Tool to create a new monitor. use when you need to schedule automated updates for a webset without manual runs. |
| `EXA_CREATE_WEBSET` | Create Webset | Tool to create a new webset with search, import, and enrichment setup. use when you need to configure and seed a webset in one call. |
| `EXA_DELETE_IMPORT` | Delete import | Tool to delete an existing import. use when you need to permanently remove an import by its id. |
| `EXA_DELETE_WEBSET` | Delete webset | Tool to delete a webset. use after confirming the webset id to permanently remove the webset and all its items. |
| `EXA_FIND_SIMILAR` | Find similar | Finds web pages semantically similar to a given url using embeddings-based search, optionally retrieving full text, highlights, or summaries for results. |
| `EXA_GET_CONTENTS_ACTION` | Get contents from URLs or document IDs | Retrieves configurable text and highlights from a list of exa document ids or publicly accessible urls. |
| `EXA_GET_EVENT` | Get Event | Tool to get details of a specific event by its id. use when you have an event id and need its full details. |
| `EXA_LIST_EVENTS` | List events | Tool to list all events that have occurred in the system. use when you need to paginate through the event history. |
| `EXA_LIST_IMPORTS` | List imports | Tool to list all imports for the webset. use when you need to paginate through and monitor import jobs. |
| `EXA_LIST_WEBHOOKS` | List webhooks | Tool to list all webhooks for websets. use when you need to view existing webhooks and paginate through results. |
| `EXA_SEARCH` | Search | Performs a web search using the exa engine, useful for queries requiring advanced filtering, specific content categories, or ai-optimized prompting. |
| `EXA_UPDATE_IMPORT` | Update import | Tool to update an import configuration by id. use when you need to modify an import's title or metadata. |

## Supported Triggers

None listed.

## Creating MCP Server - Stand-alone vs Composio SDK

The Exa MCP server is an implementation of the Model Context Protocol that connects your AI agent to Exa. It provides structured and secure access so your agent can perform Exa operations on your behalf through a secure, permission-based interface.
With Composio's managed implementation, you don't have to create your own developer app. For production, if you're building an end product, we recommend using your own credentials. The managed server helps you prototype fast and go from 0-1 faster.

## Step-by-step Guide

### 1. Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:
- Node.js 18 or higher
- A Composio account with an active API key
- An OpenAI API key
- Basic familiarity with TypeScript

### 1. Getting API Keys for OpenAI and Composio

OpenAI API Key
- Go to the [OpenAI dashboard](https://platform.openai.com/settings/organization/api-keys) and create an API key.
- You need credits or a connected billing setup to use the models.
- Store the key somewhere safe.
Composio API Key
- Log in to the [Composio dashboard](https://dashboard.composio.dev?utm_source=toolkits&utm_medium=framework_docs).
- Go to Settings and copy your API key.
- This key lets your Mastra agent talk to Composio and reach Exa through MCP.

### 2. Install dependencies

Install the required packages.
What's happening:
- @composio/core is the Composio SDK for creating MCP sessions
- @mastra/core provides the Agent class
- @mastra/mcp is Mastra's MCP client
- @ai-sdk/openai is the model wrapper for OpenAI
- dotenv loads environment variables from .env
```bash
npm install @composio/core @mastra/core @mastra/mcp @ai-sdk/openai dotenv
```

### 3. Set up environment variables

Create a .env file in your project root.
What's happening:
- COMPOSIO_API_KEY authenticates your requests to Composio
- COMPOSIO_USER_ID tells Composio which user this session belongs to
- OPENAI_API_KEY lets the Mastra agent call OpenAI models
```bash
COMPOSIO_API_KEY=your_composio_api_key_here
COMPOSIO_USER_ID=your_user_id_here
OPENAI_API_KEY=your_openai_api_key_here
```

### 4. Import libraries and validate environment

What's happening:
- dotenv/config auto loads your .env so process.env.* is available
- openai gives you a Mastra compatible model wrapper
- Agent is the Mastra agent that will call tools and produce answers
- MCPClient connects Mastra to your Composio MCP server
- Composio is used to create a Tool Router session
```typescript
import "dotenv/config";
import { openai } from "@ai-sdk/openai";
import { Agent } from "@mastra/core/agent";
import { MCPClient } from "@mastra/mcp";
import { Composio } from "@composio/core";
import * as readline from "readline";

import type { AiMessageType } from "@mastra/core/agent";

const openaiAPIKey = process.env.OPENAI_API_KEY;
const composioAPIKey = process.env.COMPOSIO_API_KEY;
const composioUserID = process.env.COMPOSIO_USER_ID;

if (!openaiAPIKey) throw new Error("OPENAI_API_KEY is not set");
if (!composioAPIKey) throw new Error("COMPOSIO_API_KEY is not set");
if (!composioUserID) throw new Error("COMPOSIO_USER_ID is not set");

const composio = new Composio({
  apiKey: composioAPIKey as string,
});
```

### 5. Create a Tool Router session for Exa

What's happening:
- create spins up a short-lived MCP HTTP endpoint for this user
- The toolkits array contains "exa" for Exa access
- session.mcp.url is the MCP URL that Mastra's MCPClient will connect to
```typescript
async function main() {
  const session = await composio.create(
    composioUserID as string,
    {
      toolkits: ["exa"],
    },
  );

  const composioMCPUrl = session.mcp.url;
  console.log("Exa MCP URL:", composioMCPUrl);
```

### 6. Configure Mastra MCP client and fetch tools

What's happening:
- MCPClient takes an id for this client and a list of MCP servers
- The headers property includes the x-api-key for authentication
- getTools fetches the tool definitions exposed by the Exa toolkit
```typescript
const mcpClient = new MCPClient({
    id: composioUserID as string,
    servers: {
      nasdaq: {
        url: new URL(composioMCPUrl),
        requestInit: {
          headers: session.mcp.headers,
        },
      },
    },
    timeout: 30_000,
  });

console.log("Fetching MCP tools from Composio...");
const composioTools = await mcpClient.getTools();
console.log("Number of tools:", Object.keys(composioTools).length);
```

### 7. Create the Mastra agent

What's happening:
- Agent is the core Mastra agent
- name is just an identifier for logging and debugging
- instructions guide the agent to use tools instead of only answering in natural language
- model uses openai("gpt-5") to configure the underlying LLM
```typescript
const agent = new Agent({
    name: "exa-mastra-agent",
    instructions: "You are an AI agent with Exa tools via Composio.",
    model: "openai/gpt-5",
  });
```

### 8. Set up interactive chat interface

What's happening:
- messages keeps the full conversation history in Mastra's expected format
- agent.generate runs the agent with conversation history and Exa toolsets
- maxSteps limits how many tool calls the agent can take in a single run
- onStepFinish is a hook that prints intermediate steps for debugging
```typescript
let messages: AiMessageType[] = [];

console.log("Chat started! Type 'exit' or 'quit' to end.\n");

const rl = readline.createInterface({
  input: process.stdin,
  output: process.stdout,
  prompt: "> ",
});

rl.prompt();

rl.on("line", async (userInput: string) => {
  const trimmedInput = userInput.trim();

  if (["exit", "quit", "bye"].includes(trimmedInput.toLowerCase())) {
    console.log("\nGoodbye!");
    rl.close();
    process.exit(0);
  }

  if (!trimmedInput) {
    rl.prompt();
    return;
  }

  messages.push({
    id: crypto.randomUUID(),
    role: "user",
    content: trimmedInput,
  });

  console.log("\nAgent is thinking...\n");

  try {
    const response = await agent.generate(messages, {
      toolsets: {
        exa: composioTools,
      },
      maxSteps: 8,
    });

    const { text } = response;

    if (text && text.trim().length > 0) {
      console.log(`Agent: ${text}\n`);
        messages.push({
          id: crypto.randomUUID(),
          role: "assistant",
          content: text,
        });
      }
    } catch (error) {
      console.error("\nError:", error);
    }

    rl.prompt();
  });

  rl.on("close", async () => {
    console.log("\nSession ended.");
    await mcpClient.disconnect();
    process.exit(0);
  });
}

main().catch((err) => {
  console.error("Fatal error:", err);
  process.exit(1);
});
```

## Complete Code

```typescript
import "dotenv/config";
import { openai } from "@ai-sdk/openai";
import { Agent } from "@mastra/core/agent";
import { MCPClient } from "@mastra/mcp";
import { Composio } from "@composio/core";
import * as readline from "readline";

import type { AiMessageType } from "@mastra/core/agent";

const openaiAPIKey = process.env.OPENAI_API_KEY;
const composioAPIKey = process.env.COMPOSIO_API_KEY;
const composioUserID = process.env.COMPOSIO_USER_ID;

if (!openaiAPIKey) throw new Error("OPENAI_API_KEY is not set");
if (!composioAPIKey) throw new Error("COMPOSIO_API_KEY is not set");
if (!composioUserID) throw new Error("COMPOSIO_USER_ID is not set");

const composio = new Composio({ apiKey: composioAPIKey as string });

async function main() {
  const session = await composio.create(composioUserID as string, {
    toolkits: ["exa"],
  });

  const composioMCPUrl = session.mcp.url;

  const mcpClient = new MCPClient({
    id: composioUserID as string,
    servers: {
      exa: {
        url: new URL(composioMCPUrl),
        requestInit: {
          headers: session.mcp.headers,
        },
      },
    },
    timeout: 30_000,
  });

  const composioTools = await mcpClient.getTools();

  const agent = new Agent({
    name: "exa-mastra-agent",
    instructions: "You are an AI agent with Exa tools via Composio.",
    model: "openai/gpt-5",
  });

  let messages: AiMessageType[] = [];

  const rl = readline.createInterface({
    input: process.stdin,
    output: process.stdout,
    prompt: "> ",
  });

  rl.prompt();

  rl.on("line", async (input: string) => {
    const trimmed = input.trim();
    if (["exit", "quit"].includes(trimmed.toLowerCase())) {
      rl.close();
      return;
    }

    messages.push({ id: crypto.randomUUID(), role: "user", content: trimmed });

    const { text } = await agent.generate(messages, {
      toolsets: { exa: composioTools },
      maxSteps: 8,
    });

    if (text) {
      console.log(`Agent: ${text}\n`);
      messages.push({ id: crypto.randomUUID(), role: "assistant", content: text });
    }

    rl.prompt();
  });

  rl.on("close", async () => {
    await mcpClient.disconnect();
    process.exit(0);
  });
}

main();
```

## Conclusion

You've built a Mastra AI agent that can interact with Exa through Composio's Tool Router.
You can extend this further by:
- Adding other toolkits like Gmail, Slack, or GitHub
- Building a web-based chat interface around this agent
- Using multiple MCP endpoints to enable cross-app workflows

## How to build Exa MCP Agent with another framework

- [OpenAI Agents SDK](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/open-ai-agents-sdk)
- [Claude Agent SDK](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/claude-agents-sdk)
- [Claude Code](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/claude-code)
- [Claude Cowork](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/claude-cowork)
- [Codex](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/codex)
- [OpenClaw](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/openclaw)
- [Hermes](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/hermes-agent)
- [CLI](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/cli)
- [Google ADK](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/google-adk)
- [LangChain](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/langchain)
- [Vercel AI SDK](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/ai-sdk)
- [LlamaIndex](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/llama-index)
- [CrewAI](https://composio.dev/toolkits/exa/framework/crew-ai)

## Related Toolkits

- [Firecrawl](https://composio.dev/toolkits/firecrawl) - Firecrawl automates large-scale web crawling and data extraction. It helps organizations efficiently gather, index, and analyze content from online sources.
- [Tavily](https://composio.dev/toolkits/tavily) - Tavily offers powerful search and data retrieval from documents, databases, and the web. It helps teams locate and filter information instantly, saving hours on research.
- [Serpapi](https://composio.dev/toolkits/serpapi) - SerpApi is a real-time API for structured search engine results. It lets you automate SERP data collection, parsing, and analysis for SEO and research.
- [Peopledatalabs](https://composio.dev/toolkits/peopledatalabs) - Peopledatalabs delivers B2B data enrichment and identity resolution APIs. Supercharge your apps with accurate, up-to-date business and contact data.
- [Snowflake](https://composio.dev/toolkits/snowflake) - Snowflake is a cloud data warehouse built for elastic scaling, secure data sharing, and fast SQL analytics across major clouds.
- [Posthog](https://composio.dev/toolkits/posthog) - PostHog is an open-source analytics platform for tracking user interactions and product metrics. It helps teams refine features, analyze funnels, and reduce churn with actionable insights.
- [Amplitude](https://composio.dev/toolkits/amplitude) - Amplitude is a digital analytics platform for product and behavioral data insights. It helps teams analyze user journeys and make data-driven decisions quickly.
- [Bright Data MCP](https://composio.dev/toolkits/brightdata_mcp) - Bright Data MCP is an AI-powered web scraping and data collection platform. Instantly access public web data in real time with advanced scraping tools.
- [Browseai](https://composio.dev/toolkits/browseai) - Browseai is a web automation and data extraction platform that turns any website into an API. It's perfect for monitoring websites and retrieving structured data without manual scraping.
- [ClickHouse](https://composio.dev/toolkits/clickhouse) - ClickHouse is an open-source, column-oriented database for real-time analytics and big data processing using SQL. Its lightning-fast query performance makes it ideal for handling large datasets and delivering instant insights.
- [Coinmarketcal](https://composio.dev/toolkits/coinmarketcal) - CoinMarketCal is a community-powered crypto calendar for upcoming events, announcements, and releases. It helps traders track market-moving developments and stay ahead in the crypto space.
- [Control d](https://composio.dev/toolkits/control_d) - Control d is a customizable DNS filtering and traffic redirection platform. It helps you manage internet access, enforce policies, and monitor usage across devices and networks.
- [Databox](https://composio.dev/toolkits/databox) - Databox is a business analytics platform that connects your data from any tool and device. It helps you track KPIs, build dashboards, and discover actionable insights.
- [Databricks](https://composio.dev/toolkits/databricks) - Databricks is a unified analytics platform for big data and AI on the lakehouse architecture. It empowers data teams to collaborate, analyze, and build scalable solutions efficiently.
- [Datagma](https://composio.dev/toolkits/datagma) - Datagma delivers data intelligence and analytics for business growth and market discovery. Get actionable market insights and track competitors to inform your strategy.
- [Delighted](https://composio.dev/toolkits/delighted) - Delighted is a customer feedback platform based on the Net Promoter System®. It helps you quickly gather, track, and act on customer sentiment.
- [Dovetail](https://composio.dev/toolkits/dovetail) - Dovetail is a research analysis platform for transcript review and insight generation. It helps teams code interviews, analyze feedback, and create actionable research summaries.
- [Dub](https://composio.dev/toolkits/dub) - Dub is a short link management platform with analytics and API access. Use it to easily create, manage, and track branded short links for your business.
- [Elasticsearch](https://composio.dev/toolkits/elasticsearch) - Elasticsearch is a distributed, RESTful search and analytics engine for all types of data. It delivers fast, scalable search and powerful analytics across massive datasets.
- [Fireflies](https://composio.dev/toolkits/fireflies) - Fireflies.ai is an AI-powered meeting assistant that records, transcribes, and analyzes voice conversations. It helps teams capture call notes automatically and search or summarize meetings effortlessly.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### What are the differences in Tool Router MCP and Exa MCP?

With a standalone Exa MCP server, the agents and LLMs can only access a fixed set of Exa tools tied to that server. However, with the Composio Tool Router, agents can dynamically load tools from Exa and many other apps based on the task at hand, all through a single MCP endpoint.

### Can I use Tool Router MCP with Mastra AI?

Yes, you can. Mastra AI fully supports MCP integration. You get structured tool calling, message history handling, and model orchestration while Tool Router takes care of discovering and serving the right Exa tools.

### Can I manage the permissions and scopes for Exa while using Tool Router?

Yes, absolutely. You can configure which Exa scopes and actions are allowed when connecting your account to Composio. You can also bring your own OAuth credentials or API configuration so you keep full control over what the agent can do.

### How safe is my data with Composio Tool Router?

All sensitive data such as tokens, keys, and configuration is fully encrypted at rest and in transit. Composio is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant and follows strict security practices so your Exa data and credentials are handled as safely as possible.

---
[See all toolkits](https://composio.dev/toolkits) · [Composio docs](https://docs.composio.dev/llms.txt)