What to Know About Model Context Protocol

Three Questions the Forbes Article Answers

❓ 1. What is Model Context Protocol (MCP) and why did Anthropic create it?

AI models struggle when the information they need—customer intent, purchase history, policies, product data—lives in dozens of disconnected apps. Model Context Protocol (MCP) is Anthropic’s fix: an open-source, USB-C-style standard (released November 2024) that lets any approved AI agent tap the right data or service through one secure port. Think of it as replacing a tangle of bespoke cables with a single, universal plug, so AI can finally join the conversation fully briefed.

Business payoff: less custom integration work, faster time-to-insight, lower maintenance costs.

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⚡ 2. How quickly can my team plug in MCP into my AI Applications?

Developers spin up an MCP server (to expose company data) or an MCP client (to call those servers) using the APIs and languages they already know—Storyblok’s engineers report a first prototype “in under an hour.” Because MCP is API-first, it snaps neatly into modern microservices and MACH (Micro-services, API-first, Cloud-native, Headless) stacks.

Ecosystem momentum

• Cloud giants — Microsoft, OpenAI, Google — are backing the spec.
• Vendors are shipping MCP-ready offerings: Cloudinary for image/video workflows; Ctera for secure hybrid-cloud file data.

The more suppliers adopt the same plug, the cheaper and safer your rollout.

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🚦 3. What could go wrong in integrating MCP—and how do we avoid it?

MCP’s power is context, but context must be curated:

✅ Do	🛑 Don’t
Map the precise signals each AI use-case needs.	Throw every data field at the model “just in case.”
Treat context as living data—test, trim, refresh.	Assume context stays correct once wired.
Align governance: who owns which context and when it updates.	Treat MCP as a bolt-on widget with no oversight.

Feed the AI too little and it guesses; drown it in noise and it stalls. Strike the balance, and MCP turns AI from a black box into an auditable, dependable teammate.

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The Bottom Line

MCP is the missing connector that lets enterprise AI understand—and act on—your business reality. Plug it in thoughtfully, and the brilliant model that once worked in isolation shows up with full context, ready to make faster, smarter decisions that move the needle.

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