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Model Context Protocol (MCP)

An open protocol by Anthropic for connecting AI models to external data sources and tools.

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Definition

Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard that allows AI applications to connect with external data sources and tools in a standardized way.

Purpose: - Standardize AI-tool connections - Enable portable tool integrations - Simplify building AI applications - Reduce fragmentation

  • **Components:**
  • MCP Servers: Provide tools and data
  • MCP Clients: AI apps that use servers
  • Protocol: Standardized communication

Example Servers: - File system access - Database connections - Git repositories - Slack, GitHub integrations - Web scraping

Benefits: - Write once, use everywhere - Community ecosystem - Secure, standardized access - Easy to implement

Examples

Claude Desktop using MCP servers to access your local files, GitHub repos, and Slack messages.

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