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MCP (Model Context Protocol)
An open protocol created by Anthropic that standardizes how AI assistants connect to external tools and data sources: a "USB-C" for AI integrations.
MCP (Model Context Protocol) is an open protocol, released by Anthropic in 2024, that defines a standard way to connect AI assistants to external tools and data. The common analogy is USB-C: instead of each AI application needing a custom integration for every service (database, GitHub, Slack, internal systems), both sides speak the same protocol and connect plug-and-play.
The architecture has two sides: MCP servers expose capabilities (tools for executable actions, resources with readable data and ready-made prompts) and MCP clients (such as Claude Desktop and AI code editors) consume those capabilities during the conversation. The same MCP server works with any compatible client, and the protocol has been adopted beyond the Anthropic ecosystem.
When to use it: when you want an AI assistant to access your systems securely and reusably, instead of pasting data into the chat. A concrete example: an MCP server for the company database lets a developer ask the assistant "how many orders were left pending yesterday?" and the model runs the query itself, through the protocol, without direct access to credentials.
