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Enable web search

Beta

This feature is in Beta. Account admins can control access to this feature from the account console Previews page. See Manage Databricks previews.

This page describes web search on Databricks and how to use it to ground model responses with real-time information from the web. Web search is available for Gemini and OpenAI foundation models served by model services in Unity AI Gateway, and for Anthropic models through Model Context Protocol (MCP).

Web search allows foundation models to retrieve up-to-date information from the internet during response generation. When web search is enabled, the model can search the web to find relevant information and incorporate it into its response. This is useful for questions about current events, recent data, or any topic where real-time information improves the response.

How you enable web search depends on the model provider and API you use:

important

Web search for OpenAI models is only available through the Responses API. It is not supported through the Chat Completions API.

Gemini models with the Chat Completions API​

To enable web search for Gemini models using the Chat Completions API, pass google_search as a top-level parameter in the request body.

Python
import os
from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key=os.environ.get('DATABRICKS_TOKEN'),
    base_url="https://<workspace-url>/ai-gateway/mlflow/v1"
)

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="system.ai.gemini-2-5-pro",
    messages=[
        {"role": "user", "content": "What are the best Italian restaurants in San Francisco?"}
    ],
    extra_body={"google_search": {}}
)

print(response.choices[0].message.content)

Gemini models with the Google Gemini API​

To enable web search using the Google Gemini API, pass google_search as a tool.

Python
from google import genai
from google.genai import types
import os

DATABRICKS_TOKEN = os.environ.get('DATABRICKS_TOKEN')

client = genai.Client(
    api_key="databricks",
    http_options=types.HttpOptions(
        base_url="https://<workspace-url>/ai-gateway/gemini",
        headers={
            "Authorization": f"Bearer {DATABRICKS_TOKEN}",
        },
    ),
)

response = client.models.generate_content(
    model="system.ai.gemini-2-5-pro",
    contents=[
        types.Content(
            role="user",
            parts=[types.Part(text="What are the best Italian restaurants in San Francisco?")],
        ),
    ],
    config=types.GenerateContentConfig(
        tools=[types.Tool(google_search=types.GoogleSearch())],
    ),
)

print(response.text)

OpenAI models with the Responses API​

To enable web search for OpenAI models, pass web_search as a tool using the OpenAI Responses API.

Python
import os
from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key=os.environ.get('DATABRICKS_TOKEN'),
    base_url="https://<workspace-url>/ai-gateway/mlflow/v1"
)

response = client.responses.create(
    model="system.ai.gpt-5",
    input=[
        {"role": "user", "content": "What are the best Italian restaurants in San Francisco?"}
    ],
    tools=[{"type": "web_search"}]
)

print(response.output_text)

Anthropic models with MCP​

Anthropic's native web search tool is not available for Databricks-hosted Anthropic models in Unity AI Gateway. Instead, you can add web search to Anthropic models using the Model Context Protocol (MCP) with a search provider such as You.com.

Set up the You.com MCP server​

  1. Navigate to Marketplace > Agents > MCP Servers in your Databricks workspace.
  2. Search for You.com and click Install.
  3. Configure the connection:
  • Connection name: Enter a name (for example, youcom_web_search).
  • Bearer token: Enter your You.com API key.
  1. Click Install.
  2. Grant USE CONNECTION privileges to appropriate users or groups under Catalog > Connections > [your connection] > Permissions.

After setup, the MCP server is available as a tool in AI Playground, agents, and other MCP-compatible clients. The proxy endpoint URL for your connection is:

https://<workspace_host>.databricks.com/api/2.0/mcp/external/<connection_name>

Use with Claude Code​

If you use Claude Code with Databricks-hosted models in Unity AI Gateway, add the You.com MCP server to enable web search:

Bash
claude mcp add youcom-search \
  --transport http \
  --url "https://<workspace_host>.databricks.com/api/2.0/mcp/external/<connection_name>" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer <your-databricks-pat>"

Verify the server was added with claude mcp list.

Alternatively, add the server directly to ~/.claude.json:

JSON
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "youcom-search": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://<workspace_host>.databricks.com/api/2.0/mcp/external/<connection_name>",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer <your-databricks-pat>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Supported models​

Web search is supported on all Gemini and OpenAI pay-per-token foundation models. See Databricks-hosted foundation models available in Foundation Model APIs for region availability.

Gemini models​

  • databricks-gemini-3-1-pro
  • databricks-gemini-3-1-flash-lite
  • databricks-gemini-3-pro
  • databricks-gemini-3-flash
  • databricks-gemini-2-5-pro
  • databricks-gemini-2-5-flash

OpenAI models​

  • databricks-gpt-5-5-pro
  • databricks-gpt-5-5
  • databricks-gpt-5-4
  • databricks-gpt-5-4-mini
  • databricks-gpt-5-4-nano
  • databricks-gpt-5-3-codex
  • databricks-gpt-5-2
  • databricks-gpt-5-2-codex
  • databricks-gpt-5-1
  • databricks-gpt-5-1-codex-max
  • databricks-gpt-5-1-codex-mini
  • databricks-gpt-5
  • databricks-gpt-5-mini
  • databricks-gpt-5-nano

Anthropic models (via MCP)​

Web search via MCP is supported on all Anthropic foundation models that support tool use.

  • databricks-claude-sonnet-4-6
  • databricks-claude-sonnet-4-5
  • databricks-claude-opus-4-7
  • databricks-claude-opus-4-6
  • databricks-claude-opus-4-5
  • databricks-claude-opus-4-1
  • databricks-claude-sonnet-4

Limitations​

  • Web search is not available for workspaces with HIPAA/BAA compliance enabled because web search queries are sent to external search services that are not HIPAA-compliant.
  • Web search results depend on the model's ability to formulate search queries and synthesize results. Response quality may vary.
  • For OpenAI models, web search is only available through the Responses API. The Chat Completions API does not support web search for OpenAI models.
  • Web search for Gemini models is not available when cross-region processing is disabled. Gemini does not support in-geo search processing, so any workspace with data residency enforcement is ineligible.
  • Web search for OpenAI models is not available when cross-region processing is disabled, unless the workspace is in an eligible geo (Americas or Europe). OpenAI supports in-geo search processing in these regions.

Additional resources​

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