{
  "title": "MCP client role",
  "description": "Consume capabilities exposed by MCP servers. Compatibility evidence is tracked independently from other MCP capabilities.",
  "slug": "mcp-client-role",
  "locale": "en",
  "seoTitle": "MCP client role compatibility — Can My Agent Use",
  "socialTitle": "MCP client role",
  "socialDescription": "Consume capabilities exposed by MCP servers. Unreviewed product cells remain unknown.",
  "llmSummary": "MCP client role is an atomic MCP capability. Support for another MCP primitive does not imply this capability.",
  "audience": "Engineers comparing chat, desktop, and CLI agent harnesses.",
  "contentKind": "feature",
  "status": "published",
  "tags": [
    "interfaces",
    "mcp"
  ],
  "updated": "2026-08-28T00:00:00.000Z",
  "published": "2026-08-28T00:00:00.000Z",
  "category": "interfaces",
  "summary": "Consume capabilities exposed by MCP servers.",
  "specLabel": "MCP 2026-07-28",
  "specification": {
    "id": "mcp",
    "revision": "2026-07-28",
    "maturity": "published",
    "role": "client, host role",
    "authority": "MCP project / AAIF ecosystem",
    "canonicalUrl": "https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/2026-07-28"
  },
  "aliases": [
    "MCP client"
  ],
  "capabilityKind": "atomic",
  "parent": "mcp",
  "related": [],
  "relations": [],
  "highlight": false,
  "notes": [
    {
      "id": 1,
      "text": "Evidence checked 2026-08-28: xAI documents Grok Bot connecting to tools through MCP servers and following Cursor team MCP policy; the Agent Plugins compatible-client registry independently lists Grok Bot's supported MCP transports."
    },
    {
      "id": 2,
      "text": "Evidence checked 2026-08-28: xAI documents custom MCP connectors in Grok Web, including server URL and authentication setup, tool discovery, and making the server's tools available in conversations."
    },
    {
      "id": 3,
      "text": "Evidence checked 2026-08-28: Anthropic documents Claude Code connecting to local and remote MCP servers, discovering their tools, prompts, and resources, and managing those servers through `claude mcp`."
    },
    {
      "id": 4,
      "text": "Evidence checked 2026-08-28: Google documents Gemini CLI connecting to configured MCP servers as a client, discovering tools, prompts, and resources, and executing server-provided tools."
    },
    {
      "id": 5,
      "text": "Evidence checked 2026-08-28: Cursor documents its editor and CLI connecting to MCP servers and consuming protocol capabilities exposed by those servers."
    },
    {
      "id": 6,
      "text": "Evidence checked 2026-08-28: Cline documents its desktop extension connecting to configured local or remote MCP servers and using their exposed capabilities."
    },
    {
      "id": 7,
      "text": "Evidence checked 2026-08-28: Continue documents MCP servers as an Agent-mode integration for connecting the editor extension to external tools, systems, databases, and context."
    },
    {
      "id": 8,
      "text": "Evidence checked 2026-08-28: Zed documents that Zed Agent uses Zed-configured MCP servers directly and currently consumes their Tools and Prompts capabilities."
    }
  ],
  "issues": [],
  "resources": [
    {
      "title": "Model Context Protocol specification",
      "href": "https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/2026-07-28",
      "kind": "spec"
    },
    {
      "id": "xai-grok-bot-team-mcp",
      "title": "xAI — Grok Bot for teams and enterprises",
      "href": "https://docs.x.ai/grok-bot/teams-and-enterprises",
      "kind": "docs",
      "publisher": "xAI",
      "evidenceType": "documented",
      "reviewedAt": "2026-08-28",
      "locator": "Plugins and MCP policy"
    },
    {
      "id": "agent-plugins-grok-bot-client",
      "title": "Agent Plugins — Compatible clients",
      "href": "https://agent-plugins.org/compatible-clients",
      "kind": "spec",
      "publisher": "Agent Plugins",
      "evidenceType": "listed",
      "reviewedAt": "2026-08-28",
      "locator": "Grok Bot"
    },
    {
      "id": "xai-grok-web-mcp",
      "title": "xAI — Grok connectors",
      "href": "https://docs.x.ai/grok/connectors",
      "kind": "docs",
      "publisher": "xAI",
      "evidenceType": "documented",
      "reviewedAt": "2026-08-28",
      "locator": "Custom MCP connectors"
    },
    {
      "id": "anthropic-claude-code-mcp",
      "title": "Anthropic — Connect Claude Code to tools via MCP",
      "href": "https://code.claude.com/docs/en/mcp",
      "kind": "docs",
      "publisher": "Anthropic",
      "evidenceType": "documented",
      "reviewedAt": "2026-08-28",
      "locator": "Add MCP servers; use MCP resources and prompts"
    },
    {
      "id": "google-gemini-cli-mcp-docs",
      "title": "Google — MCP servers with Gemini CLI",
      "href": "https://geminicli.com/docs/tools/mcp-server/",
      "kind": "docs",
      "publisher": "Google",
      "evidenceType": "documented",
      "reviewedAt": "2026-08-28",
      "locator": "What is an MCP server; core integration architecture"
    },
    {
      "id": "cursor-mcp-docs",
      "title": "Cursor — Model Context Protocol",
      "href": "https://prod.cursor.com/docs/mcp",
      "kind": "docs",
      "publisher": "Cursor",
      "evidenceType": "documented",
      "reviewedAt": "2026-08-28",
      "locator": "What is MCP; how it works"
    },
    {
      "id": "cline-mcp-docs",
      "title": "Cline — Model Context Protocol",
      "href": "https://docs.cline.bot/mcp/mcp-overview",
      "kind": "docs",
      "publisher": "Cline",
      "evidenceType": "documented",
      "reviewedAt": "2026-08-28",
      "locator": "What MCP gives you; add servers"
    },
    {
      "id": "continue-mcp-docs",
      "title": "Continue — Model Context Protocol",
      "href": "https://docs.continue.dev/customize/deep-dives/mcp",
      "kind": "docs",
      "publisher": "Continue",
      "evidenceType": "documented",
      "reviewedAt": "2026-08-28",
      "locator": "How MCP works in Continue"
    },
    {
      "id": "zed-mcp-docs",
      "title": "Zed — Model Context Protocol",
      "href": "https://zed.dev/docs/ai/mcp",
      "kind": "docs",
      "publisher": "Zed Industries",
      "evidenceType": "documented",
      "reviewedAt": "2026-08-28",
      "locator": "Supported Features; Agent Path Support"
    }
  ],
  "support": [
    {
      "harness": "claude-cli",
      "versions": [
        {
          "track": "current",
          "status": "yes",
          "noteIds": [
            3
          ],
          "target": {
            "kind": "dated-documentation",
            "revision": "current Claude Code MCP documentation",
            "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
          },
          "environmentProfile": "local-default",
          "qualifiers": [
            {
              "type": "policy",
              "value": "configured server scope, enterprise managed configuration, tool permissions, and server health determine which MCP capabilities are available in a session"
            }
          ],
          "evidence": [
            {
              "resourceId": "anthropic-claude-code-mcp",
              "type": "documented",
              "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "harness": "cursor",
      "versions": [
        {
          "track": "current",
          "status": "yes",
          "noteIds": [
            5
          ],
          "target": {
            "kind": "dated-documentation",
            "revision": "current Cursor MCP documentation observed 2026-08-28",
            "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
          },
          "environmentProfile": "local-default",
          "qualifiers": [
            {
              "type": "policy",
              "value": "configured server enablement, tool approval, enterprise allowlists, and server health determine which capabilities are available"
            }
          ],
          "evidence": [
            {
              "resourceId": "cursor-mcp-docs",
              "type": "documented",
              "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "harness": "gemini-cli",
      "versions": [
        {
          "track": "current",
          "status": "yes",
          "noteIds": [
            4
          ],
          "target": {
            "kind": "dated-documentation",
            "revision": "Gemini CLI MCP documentation updated 2026-06-18",
            "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
          },
          "environmentProfile": "local-default",
          "qualifiers": [
            {
              "type": "policy",
              "value": "configured server enablement, workspace trust, tool confirmation, and server health determine which capabilities are available"
            }
          ],
          "evidence": [
            {
              "resourceId": "google-gemini-cli-mcp-docs",
              "type": "documented",
              "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "harness": "grok-web",
      "versions": [
        {
          "track": "current",
          "status": "yes",
          "noteIds": [
            2
          ],
          "target": {
            "kind": "hosted-observation",
            "revision": "2026-08-28 Grok Web connector documentation observation",
            "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
          },
          "environmentProfile": "hosted-default",
          "qualifiers": [
            {
              "type": "transport",
              "value": "custom servers must be reachable over the public internet; local-only servers require a separate tunnel"
            },
            {
              "type": "auth",
              "value": "server authentication and provider permissions can be required"
            }
          ],
          "evidence": [
            {
              "resourceId": "xai-grok-web-mcp",
              "type": "documented",
              "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "harness": "grok-bot-desktop",
      "versions": [
        {
          "track": "current",
          "status": "yes",
          "noteIds": [
            1
          ],
          "target": {
            "kind": "hosted-observation",
            "revision": "2026-08-28 Grok Bot desktop documentation and compatible-client listing",
            "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
          },
          "environmentProfile": "hosted-default",
          "qualifiers": [
            {
              "type": "policy",
              "value": "team MCP allowlists, denylists, member-install policy, and network allowlists can disable a server"
            },
            {
              "type": "auth",
              "value": "hosted MCP authentication is shared across Cursor and Grok Bot for the account"
            }
          ],
          "evidence": [
            {
              "resourceId": "xai-grok-bot-team-mcp",
              "type": "documented",
              "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
            },
            {
              "resourceId": "agent-plugins-grok-bot-client",
              "type": "listed",
              "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "harness": "cline",
      "versions": [
        {
          "track": "current",
          "status": "yes",
          "noteIds": [
            6
          ],
          "target": {
            "kind": "dated-documentation",
            "revision": "current Cline MCP documentation observed 2026-08-28",
            "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
          },
          "environmentProfile": "local-default",
          "qualifiers": [
            {
              "type": "policy",
              "value": "configured server enablement, tool approval, enterprise controls, and server health determine which capabilities are available"
            }
          ],
          "evidence": [
            {
              "resourceId": "cline-mcp-docs",
              "type": "documented",
              "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "harness": "continue",
      "versions": [
        {
          "track": "current",
          "status": "yes",
          "noteIds": [
            7
          ],
          "target": {
            "kind": "dated-documentation",
            "revision": "current Continue MCP documentation observed 2026-08-28",
            "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
          },
          "environmentProfile": "local-default",
          "qualifiers": [
            {
              "type": "policy",
              "value": "MCP servers are available in Agent mode and depend on the active Continue configuration and server health"
            }
          ],
          "evidence": [
            {
              "resourceId": "continue-mcp-docs",
              "type": "documented",
              "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "harness": "zed-agent",
      "versions": [
        {
          "track": "current",
          "status": "yes",
          "noteIds": [
            8
          ],
          "target": {
            "kind": "dated-documentation",
            "revision": "current Zed MCP documentation observed 2026-08-28",
            "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
          },
          "environmentProfile": "local-default",
          "qualifiers": [
            {
              "type": "host-role",
              "value": "claim is scoped to Zed Agent using Zed-configured MCP servers directly, not external agents forwarded through ACP"
            }
          ],
          "evidence": [
            {
              "resourceId": "zed-mcp-docs",
              "type": "documented",
              "observedAt": "2026-08-28"
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "html": "/features/mcp-client-role",
  "markdown": "/features/mcp-client-role.md",
  "json": "/api/v1/features/mcp-client-role.json",
  "body": "Consume capabilities exposed by MCP servers.\n\nThe Grok Bot claim is scoped to its hosted desktop product and inherited Cursor MCP policy. It does not prove support for MCP resources, prompts, sampling, elicitation, or every authentication flow; those remain separate rows."
}