MCP vs RAG: What’s the Difference and When to Use Each
MCP vs RAG is a question about what kind of data your AI needs. RAG (retrieval-augmented generation) lets an AI look things up in your documents before it answers. MCP (Model Context Protocol) lets an AI use tools to fetch live data from your apps or take actions in them. They solve different problems, and […]
What is an MCP gateway and do you need one?
An MCP gateway sits between your AI apps and the MCP servers they use. Instead of connecting Claude, ChatGPT or an agent to every server one by one, you connect them to the gateway, and the gateway decides who can use which tools, handles sign-in and keeps a record of what happened. This guide explains […]
MCP vs API: What’s the difference and when to use each
MCP vs API comes down to who is doing the work. An API lets one program talk to another, and a developer writes the code that calls it. MCP (Model Context Protocol) is a standard way for an AI assistant to find tools and use them by itself, and those tools usually call APIs underneath. […]
Best Claude Connectors: What each does and How to add more
Claude connectors let Claude read your data and take actions inside the apps you already use, like Gmail, Slack, Notion or HubSpot. This guide lists the best Claude connectors by job, shows what each one can and cannot do, and explains how to add an app that is not in Claude’s directory yet. Every connector […]
ChatGPT MCP: plans, setup and what breaks in 2026
ChatGPT MCP means connecting ChatGPT to your own systems through the Model Context Protocol, so it can query your ledger, your CRM or your data warehouse instead of guessing. The protocol started at Anthropic and OpenAI adopted it during 2025, which means a server built once serves both assistants. What differs is everything around the […]
How to build an MCP server for EU accounting software
Most guides on how to build an MCP server stop at a weather API and a stdio transport. That is enough to see the protocol work, and nowhere near enough to point Claude at Exact Online, Yuki or AFAS. European accounting systems bring per-tenant OAuth, per-division rate limits, country-specific ledger structures and a regulator who […]
CLI vs MCP: when a direct query beats an MCP call
CLI vs MCP is the wrong fight to pick as “which is better” – they win in different places. A direct CLI or SQL call is cheaper per operation and better for high-volume automated pipelines. MCP wins for authentication, multi-user access, governance and letting non-technical people use AI on data. This post shows the real […]
MCP security: what to actually configure in production
MCP security means five practical things: give the AI a limited key you can switch off, control what it can see at the database level, assume it might read a malicious instruction, require a human to approve important changes, and keep a log that shows which question caused which change. This post explains each one […]
Context layer comparison: Fabric IQ, Cortex Sense & more
Three vendors launched a “context layer” within eight weeks: Microsoft’s Fabric IQ, Snowflake’s Cortex Sense and Airbyte’s Context Store. A fourth pattern – warehouse-first MCP – was already doing the same job under a different name. This context layer comparison explains what each one actually is, how they differ in architecture, and who each option […]
Data pipelines in Claude Code: a real walkthrough
Claude Code can connect to your data platform over MCP and manage pipelines from the terminal: check what synced overnight, read failure logs, trace lineage before a risky change, and build transformation tables from a prompt. This is a real walkthrough of data pipelines in Claude Code – setup, daily workflow, and the honest limits. […]