MCP Explained in 5 Minutes — The Protocol That Makes AI Agents Actually Useful

MCP (Model Context Protocol) is everywhere right now. Claude Code uses it. Cursor supports it. Every AI agent framework is adding MCP support. But most explanations make it way more complicated than it needs to be. Here's the simple version. What MCP Is (In One Sentence) MCP is a standard way for AI models to use external tools — like USB but for AI. The Problem MCP Solves Before MCP, every AI integration was custom: Claude + GitHub → custom code Claude + Slack → different custom code Claude + Database → yet another custom integration GPT + GitHub → completely different custom code With MCP: Any AI + MCP Server (GitHub) → works Any AI + MCP Server (Slack) → works Any AI + MCP Server (Database) → works Write the integration once, use it with any AI model. How It Works ┌──────────┐ MCP Protocol ┌──────────────┐ │ AI Host │ ◄──────────────────► │ MCP Server │ │ (Claude) │ JSON-RPC over │ (GitHub, │ │ │ stdio/SSE │ Slack, DB) │ └──────────┘ └──────────────┘ The MCP server exposes tools (fu