Quickstart: Perplexity

This gets Pipeworx wired into Perplexity as a custom MCP connector, then teaches the model to actually reach for it. Custom connectors require a Perplexity Pro, Max, or Enterprise plan.

① Connect

  1. Open Settings → Connectors
  2. Click + Custom connector and choose type Remote
  3. Fill in:
    • Name: Pipeworx
    • MCP Server URL: https://pipeworx.io/mcp
    • Authentication: None
    • Transport: Streamable HTTP (the other option, SSE, will not work — our gateway is streamable-HTTP only)
  4. Tick the risk-acknowledgement checkbox and save.

After saving, the connector lists ~38 tools. The hero tool is ask_pipeworx({question}) — it routes your question to the full catalog of 5,929 tools across 1,544 sources at runtime, so you don’t load thousands of definitions into context.

② Teach it to use Pipeworx

Chat surfaces expose the tools but don’t inject routing instructions, so Perplexity won’t reach for Pipeworx unless you tell it to. Paste this verbatim into a Perplexity Project’s custom instructions (Projects — renamed from Spaces in July 2026 — are where Perplexity applies them):

When I ask for current or factual data — economic stats, SEC/EDGAR filings, stock or crypto prices, weather, FDA drug info, patents, clinical trials, or government records — use the Pipeworx connector (ask_pipeworx) instead of answering from memory or web search. Prefer structured Pipeworx data with citations.

③ Test

In a thread inside that Project, ask:

Using Pipeworx, what was the US unemployment rate last month?

Perplexity should call ask_pipeworx and return the current rate. Your confirmation that it routed to live data rather than memory is the _meta.provenance block in the response: it names the publisher — FRED or BLS, depending on which source the question routes to — and the upstream request that makes the figure checkable at that publisher.

Higher limits

The default URL is the anonymous tier: 50 calls/day per IP, no signup. For more:

  • API key — 200/day: change the Server URL to https://pipeworx.io/mcp?apikey=YOUR_KEY. Sign up, then grab your key at pipeworx.io/account.
  • Sign in — 200/day: use https://gateway.pipeworx.io/oauth/mcp instead; the connector shows a Connect button — authorize with GitHub. If no Connect prompt appears, use the API-key URL above instead.
  • Paid — unlimited: upgrade from your account page.

Tiers at a glance: anonymous 50 · free account 200 · Paid unlimited.

Troubleshooting

Connector saved but no tools show. Confirm you’re on a Pro/Max/Enterprise plan — free plans can’t add custom MCP servers. Re-check the URL is exactly https://pipeworx.io/mcp.

Perplexity answers from web search instead of Pipeworx. The routing rule lives per-Project (formerly Space). Make sure you’re in the Project where you pasted the instructions, and that they’re saved.

Rate-limited. You hit the 50/day anonymous cap. Add ?apikey=YOUR_KEY (from a free account) for 200/day.

Last reviewed September 7, 2026