In short
Ask your question as usual: Zack KI decides itself whether it needs the web, searches and answers with the sources it used. Click the line above the answer to see the searches and open each source in your browser.
- When it searches
- The AI decides, for questions that depend on current facts
- Sources
- In the collapsed line above the answer; they open in your browser
Step by step
- Press Alt+1 or Alt+2 and ask a question that depends on current facts, for example “What is the current minimum wage in Germany, and since when?”
- Zack KI decides whether to search. While it works, the status shows “Searching the web” and, when it reads a page in full, “Opening page”.
- When the answer is done, a line such as “Thought for 12s · 4 sources” sits above it.
- Click that line to see the search steps and the list of sources. Click a source to open it in your browser.
- Check important figures and dates on the source page before you use them.
When does Zack KI search the web?
There is no search button. The AI searches when the answer depends on facts that may have changed or that it is not sure about: prices, opening hours, release dates, rules, news. For a grammar fix or an explanation of a text you selected, it answers without searching.
The search receives search terms and a short description of what is being looked for, not your attachments. Each search step shows the terms it used.
The chips “Improve”, “Fix errors”, “Summarize” and “Explain” never search the web when they run on selected or typed text.
What is the difference between Quick and Deep with web search?
| Quick | Deep | |
|---|---|---|
| Searches the web | Yes | Yes |
| Opens a found page to read it in full | No, works from the search results | Can, when the details matter |
| Answer | Brief and fast | More thorough, takes more time |
Use Deep when the answer has to come from the details of one page, such as the conditions in a product sheet. More in Quick or Deep.
Does web search use extra credits?
Yes. Each answer uses credits for the text the AI reads and writes; every search and every opened page adds to that, and the found text counts as input.
Web search is not part of Zack Free, see Is Zack KI free?. Without it, the AI answers from its own knowledge and says when it cannot check something live.
Can I use my own search provider?
Yes, together with your own API key (see bring your own API key). Under “Settings” → “Models” → “Web search” you set “Availability” to “Off”, “Deep only” or “All” and choose the “Search provider”: “Built in” uses the search of your model provider, if it offers one; Exa, Tavily and Serper need a “Search API key”. The search provider bills you directly.
Related questions
Can I make Zack KI search?
With Zack Software as your AI provider, there is no search switch. Say in your question that you need current information, for example “check today’s prices online”. The AI then decides whether to search.
Why does my answer show no sources?
The AI did not search for this answer, for example because it could answer from the text you sent. Sources appear only after a search, in the collapsed line above the answer.
Can the sources be wrong?
Yes. Pages can be outdated or one-sided, and the AI can misread them. Open the source and check figures, dates and quotes before you rely on them.