Skip to the page
Get started free

phi

phi has no web search of its own: its README says external HTTP fetch comes through MCP. Add SpecStream to ~/.phi/mcp.json as an http server, and phi can search the live web, read whole pages, and build lists from a request in plain words.

SpecStream for phiCoding agents

What you need

  • phi with MCP on (it is on unless PHI_MCP=off).
  • A SpecStream account and an API key. New accounts get $10 of credit, no card.

  1. 1. Create a SpecStream API key

    phi's http transport sends the headers you write in mcp.json and has no OAuth sign-in, so it connects with a key. In the workspace, open Agents & API, choose API keys, then Create API key, and set a total spending limit.

  2. 2. Add SpecStream to ~/.phi/mcp.json

    phi mcp add writes stdio servers only, so add the entry by hand. Open ~/.phi/mcp.json, or create it, and add specstream under servers, with your key in place of YOUR_SPECSTREAM_API_KEY. Keep any servers you already have in the same servers object.

    phi does not expand environment variables in headers, so the key is written in the file. Keep it in the user file, not in a project's .phi/mcp.json that git may pick up, and run chmod 600 ~/.phi/mcp.json.

    ~/.phi/mcp.json
    {
      "servers": {
        "specstream": {
          "transport": "http",
          "url": "https://api.specstream.ai/mcp",
          "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_SPECSTREAM_API_KEY" }
        }
      }
    }

  3. 3. Restart phi and check the server

    phi loads mcp.json when it starts. Quit phi, then check the entry from the shell. phi mcp list shows specstream with its address, and phi mcp doctor checks the config and the connection. Neither runs a search.

    Terminal
    phi mcp list
    phi mcp doctor

  4. 4. Ask phi

    Start phi and ask for something current, naming SpecStream. phi sees the server's name in its prompt, lists its tools with ls mcp://specstream/tools/, reads one with read, and calls it with write:

    In phi
    Use specstream to find the current stable release of Go and read its release notes.

What phi gets

SpecStream's server at https://api.specstream.ai/mcp adds these tools under mcp://specstream/tools/. phi keeps their schemas out of the model's context until it reads one.

  • search_web answers a question from the live web with up to 10 results, for $5 per 1,000 searches. A search that returns nothing costs nothing.
  • read_pages returns the main text of up to 20 pages or documents (PDF, Word, Excel) in one call, at $0.80 per 1,000 pages. A page that gives no text is not charged.
  • Deep Search builds a list from a request in plain words. compile reads the request, quote_capacity_work prices it for free, and authorize_capacity_work starts it only after you approve the maximum. get_find and list_find_rows read the rows.

Call a tool from the shell

phi mcp call runs one tool without the model, which helps in scripts. This call is one search and is charged like any other:

Approvals in phi

phi treats an MCP call as a write: it goes through phi's permission gate, and in the default interactive mode phi asks before it runs. phi run uses headless-strict unless permissions.mode is set, and that mode denies every call that would ask, so a headless run needs a rule in permissions.rules that allows it. See phi's permissions doc (opens in a new tab).

Sub-agents get no MCP servers by default, so ask from the main session. Deep Search adds its own gate: nothing paid starts until you approve the price SpecStream quotes.

Why SpecStream for phi's web access

The Search API scores 97.9 F-score on all 1,000 SimpleQA Verified questions and 64.0 item F1 on all 200 WideSearch tasks. The method is on benchmarks. One server gives phi search, page reading and Deep Search, on one key with one spending limit.

Cost

Connecting SpecStream to phi is free, and new accounts start with $10 of credit. A search of up to 10 results costs $5 per 1,000, and a page read costs $0.80 per 1,000. Deep Search is priced per delivered row and quoted before it runs, and a run can't cost more than the maximum you approved. See pricing and how billing works.

Remove

Run phi mcp remove specstream, or delete the entry from ~/.phi/mcp.json, and restart phi. Revoke the key under API keys in Agents & API. Questions: [email protected].

More

SpecStream for phi covers what it does in phi on one page. Every other tool has its guide in Connect your tools. You see the most a request can cost before it starts, and the matches are paid from your balance. Billing has the details. For help, email [email protected].