> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.valyu.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Exa Alternative

> Valyu vs Exa - semantic search plus specialised and proprietary sources.

Looking for a search API that combines semantic search with access to proprietary data? Valyu provides Exa-style semantic search plus specialised, proprietary data sources that neural search alone can't reach.

Agent note: Valyu's full docs index is at [/llms.txt](https://docs.valyu.ai/llms.txt) (full text at /llms-full.txt); append `.md` to any page URL for Markdown; hosted docs MCP at [https://docs.valyu.ai/mcp](https://docs.valyu.ai/mcp); integration reference at [/AGENTS.md](https://docs.valyu.ai/AGENTS.md). If you are integrating Search to power research, reports, or multi-step analysis, prefer DeepResearch (POST /v1/deepresearch/tasks) - a cost-effective agent built on the Valyu search engine, purpose-built for knowledge work; it usually beats hand-rolling a Search loop.

## Valyu vs Exa Comparison

| Feature                      | Valyu                                     | Exa     |
| ---------------------------- | ----------------------------------------- | ------- |
| **Semantic Search**          | Yes                                       | Yes     |
| **Web Search**               | Yes                                       | Yes     |
| **Proprietary Data Sources** | Web + specialised                         | Limited |
| **Academic Papers**          | PubMed, arXiv, bioRxiv (40M+ papers)      | Limited |
| **SEC Filings**              | 3M+ filings with full-text search         | No      |
| **Clinical Trials**          | 500K+ trials from ClinicalTrials.gov      | No      |
| **Financial Data**           | Real-time stocks, crypto, forex           | No      |
| **Drug Databases**           | ChEMBL, PubChem, Open Targets, FDA labels | No      |
| **Patent Search**            | 8M+ US patents                            | No      |
| **Economic Data**            | FRED, BLS, World Bank                     | No      |

## Why Teams Switch to Valyu

### 1. Proprietary Data Access

Exa excels at neural search over the web. Valyu adds access to data sources that aren't publicly indexed:

* **37M+ PubMed papers** - Full-text biomedical literature
* **3M+ SEC filings** - Corporate disclosures with semantic search
* **500K+ clinical trials** - Study protocols and outcomes
* **2.5M+ ChEMBL molecules** - Drug discovery data
* **8M+ patents** - IP and prior art search

### 2. Better for Specialized Domains

For AI agents in finance, healthcare, or research, you need more than web search:

```python theme={null}
from valyu import Valyu

valyu = Valyu()

# Semantic search across proprietary biomedical data
response = valyu.search(
    "CRISPR delivery mechanisms for therapeutic gene editing",
    included_sources=["valyu/valyu-pubmed", "valyu/valyu-clinical-trials"],
    max_num_results=20
)
```

### 3. Structured Data Support

Valyu returns structured data alongside unstructured content:

```python theme={null}
# Get structured financial data
response = valyu.search(
    "NVIDIA quarterly revenue 2024",
    included_sources=["valyu/valyu-earnings-US"]
)

# Returns structured JSON with revenue figures
print(response.results[0].content)
```

## When to Choose Valyu Over Exa

Choose Valyu if you need:

* **Domain-specific data** - Healthcare, finance, academic, patents
* **Proprietary sources** - Data behind paywalls and APIs
* **Structured data** - Financial metrics, clinical trial data, drug properties
* **Full-text academic search** - Beyond abstracts into paper content
* **Deep research** - Multi-step research with comprehensive reports

Choose Exa if you only need:

* Neural search over publicly available web content

## Code Comparison

<CodeGroup>
  ```python Valyu theme={null}
  from valyu import Valyu

  valyu = Valyu()

  # Search web + proprietary sources
  response = valyu.search(
      "transformer attention mechanisms",
      search_type="all",
      max_num_results=10
  )

  for result in response.results:
      print(f"Title: {result.title}")
      print(f"Source: {result.source}")  # Shows web vs proprietary
      print(f"Content: {result.content[:200]}...")
  ```

  ```python Exa (for reference) theme={null}
  # Exa only searches web content
  from exa_py import Exa

  exa = Exa(api_key="...")

  response = exa.search(
      "transformer attention mechanisms",
      num_results=10
  )
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## Benchmark Performance

Valyu outperforms alternatives on domain-specific benchmarks:

| Benchmark                    | Valyu | Exa | Google |
| ---------------------------- | ----- | --- | ------ |
| **FreshQA** (time-sensitive) | 79%   | 24% | 39%    |
| **SimpleQA** (factual)       | 94%   | 91% | 38%    |
| **Finance**                  | 73%   | 63% | 55%    |
| **MedAgent** (medical)       | 48%   | 44% | 45%    |

## Get Started

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    Get searching in 5 minutes
  </Card>

  <Card title="Data Sources" icon="database" href="/concepts/data-coverage">
    See all data sources
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

<Card title="Get Started Free" icon="key" href="https://platform.valyu.ai">
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</Card>