What is MCP?
Also called: Model Context Protocol
The short answer
MCP, the Model Context Protocol, is an open standard for connecting AI assistants to external tools and data, such as databases, design files, browsers and APIs.
MCP, explained
An MCP server exposes a tool once; any MCP-capable assistant can then use it, which is how coding agents read designs, query data or drive a browser.
Questions people ask about MCP
What is MCP?
MCP, the Model Context Protocol, is an open standard for connecting AI assistants to external tools and data, such as databases, design files, browsers and APIs.
Related terms
An AI agent is an AI system that pursues a goal over several steps, deciding what to do, using tools like a browser, terminal or APIs, and checking its own results.
Claude CodeClaude Code is Anthropic's agentic coding tool that works in a terminal, IDE or desktop app, reading a codebase, editing files and running commands to complete development tasks.
APIAn API is a defined way for one piece of software to ask another for data or actions, such as a site asking a payment service to charge a card.
Vibe codingVibe coding is building software by describing what you want to an AI in plain language and iterating on what it produces, rather than writing the code line by line yourself.
Part of the Web Encyclopedia by Apex Flow Digital. Definitions are general knowledge, kept current, with no invented statistics.