Restrict X Search to specific handles

Pass allowed_x_handles (max 20) on the x_search tool so Grok only considers posts from those accounts. Base setup: Search X posts with the Grok API.

xAI SDK

import os

from xai_sdk import Client
from xai_sdk.chat import user
from xai_sdk.tools import x_search

client = Client(api_key=os.getenv("XAI_API_KEY"))
chat = client.chat.create(
    model="grok-4.6",
    tools=[
        x_search(allowed_x_handles=["elonmusk", "xai"]),
    ],
)

chat.append(user("What is the current status of xAI?"))
response = chat.sample()
print(response.content)

OpenAI Responses

curl https://api.x.ai/v1/responses \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $XAI_API_KEY" \
  -d '{
  "model": "grok-4.6",
  "input": [
    {
      "role": "user",
      "content": "What is the current status of xAI?"
    }
  ],
  "tools": [
    {
      "type": "x_search",
      "allowed_x_handles": ["elonmusk", "xai"]
    }
  ]
}'

Vercel AI SDK

import { xai } from '@ai-sdk/xai';
import { generateText } from 'ai';

const { text } = await generateText({
  model: xai.responses('grok-4.6'),
  prompt: 'What is the current status of xAI?',
  tools: {
    x_search: xai.tools.xSearch({
      allowedXHandles: ['elonmusk', 'xai'],
    }),
  },
});

console.log(text);

Exclude handles instead

Use excluded_x_handles (also max 20) when you want the open firehose minus a short blocklist. Pass handles without the @.

x_search(excluded_x_handles=["elonmusk"])

Pitfalls

• allowed_x_handles and excluded_x_handles cannot share the same request.
• Handles are account names without @, up to 20 each.
• Pair with from_date / to_date when you also need a window: Set an X Search date range.
• Console API credits are separate from SuperGrok's weekly pool on grok.com.