Perplexity Sonar via Openrouter in CLI

Local OpenRouter Sonar web search CLI using the user's OpenRouter API key. Use when you want OpenRouter-backed web search or cited research from a local comm...

Security Scan

The code and SKILL.md implement a local OpenRouter-backed Sonar CLI and behave as described, but the registry metadata omits the required OPENROUTER_API_KEY (a meaningful inconsistency) and the package requires installing/running a script from an external repo — verify before installing.

Purpose & Capability

The skill's name/description match the included README, SKILL.md, and the Bun CLI script: it implements a local 'sonar' CLI that calls OpenRouter endpoints and maps Perplexity Sonar models. The declared registry metadata, however, does not list the required OPENROUTER_API_KEY even though the SKILL.md and script require it — this metadata omission is inconsistent.

Instruction Scope

Runtime instructions and the CLI code are limited to building chat-completion requests to openrouter.ai, listing models, and optionally writing user-requested output files. The SKILL.md does not direct the agent to read unrelated files or other credentials. The only environment variables referenced are OPENROUTER_API_KEY (required) and a couple of optional OPENROUTER_* variables, which are appropriate for the described function.

Install Mechanism

There is no packaged install spec in the skill registry; README suggests cloning the GitHub repo and symlinking the TypeScript/Bun script into ~/.local/bin. This is a common lightweight install pattern; it requires the Bun runtime and running a script from an external repo, which is expected but does carry the normal trust/runtime risk of executing third-party scripts locally.

Credentials

The code legitimately requires a single API credential (OPENROUTER_API_KEY) and optionally a model/referrer/title env var. However, the registry metadata claims 'Required env vars: none' while SKILL.md and the script state OPENROUTER_API_KEY is required. This inconsistency could lead to accidental disclosure or misconfiguration and should be corrected before use.

Persistence & Privilege

The skill is not always-enabled, does not request system-wide configuration changes, and does not modify other skills. It runs on demand as a local CLI; no elevated or persistent privileges are requested.

What to consider before installing

This package appears to do what it says: a local CLI that calls openrouter.ai using your OPENROUTER_API_KEY. Before installing: (1) verify the repository/source you clone (the package has no homepage in the registry); (2) be aware the README instructs you to run a Bun script from the repository — inspect the script yourself before making it executable; (3) set OPENROUTER_API_KEY only if you trust the code, and consider using a limited-scope API key or a dedicated account; (4) note the registry metadata omitted the required env var — treat that as a red flag and prefer source verification; (5) run the tool in an isolated environment if you are unsure (container/VM) and review network traffic if you need to confirm it only talks to openrouter.ai.

OpenRouter Sonar

This skill provides a local sonar CLI backed by OpenRouter Sonar models with web search enabled.

Commands

Search

sonar "latest OpenRouter Sonar features"
sonar "best document AI underwriting startups" --model sonar-pro
sonar "credit underwriting agents" --model sonar-reasoning-pro
sonar "latest underwriting automation startups" --format md --output notes.md
sonar "OpenRouter Sonar pricing" --format json --output sonar.json

Default model:

• sonar

Supported short model names:

• sonar
• sonar-pro
• sonar-pro-search
• sonar-reasoning
• sonar-reasoning-pro
• sonar-deep-research

These map internally to:

• perplexity/sonar
• perplexity/sonar-pro
• perplexity/sonar-pro-search
• perplexity/sonar-reasoning
• perplexity/sonar-reasoning-pro
• perplexity/sonar-deep-research

Models

sonar models

Shortcuts

sonar pro "latest OpenRouter Sonar features"
sonar pro-search "best cited search workflow for agents"
sonar deep "compare OpenRouter Sonar vs Tavily for research"
sonar reason "reason through the strongest arguments for and against RAG here"
sonar reason-pro "compare three underwriting architectures and justify the best one"

Research

sonar research "Compare Tavily, Exa, and Sonar for cited research workflows"
sonar research "Latest UK AI policy changes" --format md --output policy.md

Default model for research:

• sonar-deep-research

Output

Use --output to write to a file and --format to choose the file type.

Supported formats:

• text
• txt
• md
• json

Environment

Required:

• OPENROUTER_API_KEY

Optional:

• OPENROUTER_SONAR_MODEL using short form, for example sonar or sonar-pro
• OPENROUTER_REFERER
• OPENROUTER_TITLE

Notes

• This is intentionally local, not MCP.
• It uses OpenRouter chat completions with web search enabled.
• Short model names are preferred, but full perplexity/... names still work.