> Fetch clean Markdown by appending `.md` to any page URL under https://signalwire.com/docs or requesting it with the HTTP header `Accept: text/markdown`. The root index at https://signalwire.com/docs/llms.txt lists the available documentation indexes.

# Skills

> Built-in skills catalog with configuration parameters and usage patterns.

[add-skill]: /docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/agent-base/add-skill

[skillbase]: /docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skill-base

Skills are pluggable capabilities that add tools to your agent. Add a skill with
[`add_skill()`][add-skill] and it registers
one or more SWAIG functions automatically. Skills handle setup, parameter validation,
and tool registration so you can add features like weather, search, or math with a
single call.

```python
from signalwire import AgentBase

class MyAgent(AgentBase):
    def __init__(self):
        super().__init__(name="my-agent")
        self.set_prompt_text("You are a helpful assistant.")

        # No-config skill
        self.add_skill("datetime")

        # Skill with parameters
        self.add_skill("web_search", {
            "api_key": "YOUR_KEY",
            "search_engine_id": "YOUR_ENGINE_ID"
        })

if __name__ == "__main__":
    MyAgent().run()
```

## Skills Summary

| Skill                                                                                             | Functions | API Required | Multi-Instance |
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------- | ------------ | -------------- |
| [`datetime`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/datetime)                           | 2         | No           | No             |
| [`math`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/math)                                   | 1         | No           | No             |
| [`web_search`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/web-search)                       | 1         | Yes          | Yes            |
| [`wikipedia_search`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/wikipedia-search)           | 1         | No           | No             |
| [`weather_api`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/weather-api)                     | 1         | Yes          | No             |
| [`joke`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/joke)                                   | 1         | Yes          | No             |
| [`play_background_file`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/play-background-file)   | 1         | No           | Yes            |
| [`swml_transfer`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/swml-transfer)                 | 1         | No           | Yes            |
| [`datasphere`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/datasphere)                       | 1         | Yes          | Yes            |
| [`datasphere_serverless`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/datasphere-serverless) | 1         | Yes          | Yes            |
| [`native_vector_search`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/native-vector-search)   | 1         | No           | Yes            |
| [`mcp_gateway`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/mcp-gateway)                     | Dynamic   | No           | Yes            |
| [`google_maps`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/google-maps)                     | 2         | Yes          | No             |
| [`info_gatherer`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/info-gatherer)                 | 2         | No           | Yes            |
| [`claude_skills`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/claude-skills)                 | Dynamic   | No           | Yes            |
| [`spider`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/spider)                               | 3         | No           | Yes            |
| [`api_ninjas_trivia`](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/api-ninjas-trivia)         | 1         | Yes          | Yes            |

## Configuration

All skills accept configuration via a dictionary passed to `add_skill()`. Skills can also
read values from environment variables when a parameter defines an `env_var` fallback.

```python
# Direct configuration
self.add_skill("web_search", {"api_key": "KEY", "search_engine_id": "ID"})

# Environment variable fallback
import os
self.add_skill("web_search", {
    "api_key": os.getenv("GOOGLE_API_KEY"),
    "search_engine_id": os.getenv("SEARCH_ENGINE_ID")
})
```

### SWAIG Field Overrides

Override SWAIG function metadata for any skill by including a `swaig_fields` key:

```python
from signalwire import AgentBase

class MyAgent(AgentBase):
    def __init__(self):
        super().__init__(name="assistant", route="/assistant")
        self.set_prompt_text("You are a helpful assistant.")
        self.add_skill("datetime", {
            "swaig_fields": {
                "fillers": {"en-US": ["Let me check the time...", "One moment..."]},
                "secure": False
            }
        })

agent = MyAgent()
agent.serve()
```

### Multi-Instance Skills

Skills that support multiple instances require unique `tool_name` values:

```python
from signalwire import AgentBase

class MyAgent(AgentBase):
    def __init__(self):
        super().__init__(name="assistant", route="/assistant")
        self.set_prompt_text("You are a helpful assistant.")
        self.add_skill("native_vector_search", {
            "tool_name": "search_products",
            "index_file": "/data/products.swsearch"
        })
        self.add_skill("native_vector_search", {
            "tool_name": "search_faqs",
            "index_file": "/data/faqs.swsearch"
        })

agent = MyAgent()
agent.serve()
```

---

## Extending SkillBase

For creating custom skills, see [`SkillBase`][skillbase].

---

#### [datetime](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/datetime)

Date and time with timezone support.

#### [math](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/math)

Secure mathematical calculations.

#### [joke](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/joke)

Tell jokes via API Ninjas.

#### [weather\_api](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/weather-api)

Current weather conditions.

#### [web\_search](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/web-search)

Google Custom Search.

#### [wikipedia\_search](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/wikipedia-search)

Wikipedia factual search.

#### [google\_maps](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/google-maps)

Address validation and routes.

#### [play\_background\_file](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/play-background-file)

Background audio/video playback.

#### [swml\_transfer](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/swml-transfer)

Call transfer with pattern matching.

#### [datasphere](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/datasphere)

DataSphere document search.

#### [datasphere\_serverless](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/datasphere-serverless)

DataSphere serverless search.

#### [native\_vector\_search](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/native-vector-search)

Local vector index search.

#### [info\_gatherer](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/info-gatherer)

Configurable question collection.

#### [api\_ninjas\_trivia](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/api-ninjas-trivia)

Trivia questions from API Ninjas.

#### [spider](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/spider)

Web scraping and crawling.

#### [claude\_skills](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/claude-skills)

Load SKILL.md files as tools.

#### [custom\_skills](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/custom-skills)

Create and register custom skills.

#### [mcp\_gateway](/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/mcp-gateway)

MCP server integration.

> Built-in skills catalog with configuration parameters and usage patterns.

## Docs

- [api_ninjas_trivia](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/api-ninjas-trivia.md): Get trivia questions from API Ninjas with configurable categories.
- [claude_skills](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/claude-skills.md): Load Claude Code-style SKILL.md files as agent tools.
- [Custom Skills](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/custom-skills.md): Create custom skills and register them from external directories or via pip packages.
- [datasphere](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/datasphere.md): Search documents uploaded to SignalWire DataSphere.
- [datasphere_serverless](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/datasphere-serverless.md): Search SignalWire DataSphere documents using a DataMap for serverless execution.
- [datetime](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/datetime.md): Get current date and time information with timezone support.
- [google_maps](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/google-maps.md): Validate addresses and compute driving routes using Google Maps.
- [info_gatherer](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/info-gatherer.md): Collect answers to a configurable list of questions.
- [joke](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/joke.md): Tell jokes using the API Ninjas joke API.
- [math](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/math.md): Perform mathematical calculations using a secure expression evaluator.
- [mcp_gateway](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/mcp-gateway.md): Connect to MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers via the MCP Gateway service.
- [native_vector_search](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/native-vector-search.md): Search local .swsearch vector index files.
- [play_background_file](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/play-background-file.md): Control background file playback during calls.
- [spider](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/spider.md): Fast web scraping and crawling.
- [swml_transfer](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/swml-transfer.md): Transfer calls between agents using SWML or direct connect.
- [weather_api](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/weather-api.md): Get current weather conditions for locations worldwide using WeatherAPI.com.
- [web_search](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/web-search.md): Search the web using the Google Custom Search API.
- [wikipedia_search](https://signalwire.com/docs/server-sdks/reference/python/agents/skills/wikipedia-search.md): Search Wikipedia for factual information.